MINISTER FOR WOMEN

Departmental Appointments

Sandra Gidley: To ask the Minister for Women what guidance she gives to departments regarding the setting of departmental targets for the appointment of women; and if she will make a statement.

Patricia Hewitt: This Government are committed to achieving an even balance of men and women on boards of public bodies. Responsibility for making these appointments lies with individual Ministers supported by their Departments. Each Department sets out its target for increasing diversity in public appointments in "Public Bodies: Opening up Public Appointments 2002–2005". The DTI is committed to between 45 and 55 per cent. of appointments made each year to be women.
	The Cabinet Office has lead responsibility for public appointments. It is committed to helping Departments achieve the targets they have set, while upholding the principles of selection on merit.

EU Equality Advisory Committee

Sandra Gidley: To ask the Minister for Women if she will make a statement regarding conclusions reached at the EU Equality Advisory Committee meeting on 9 October 2002.

Patricia Hewitt: The purpose of the meeting of the EU Advisory Committee on 9 October was to exchange information and experience. The minutes of the meeting are not yet available from the European Commission.

Public Appointments

Sandra Gidley: To ask the Minister for Women how many regional seminar series in each region were hosted by the Women and Equality Unit to attract women to public appointments in each of the last two years; and if she will make a statement.

Patricia Hewitt: During 2002 the Women and Equality Unit hosted eight regional seminars. The seminars were held in the following places:
	Abingdon
	Canterbury
	Norwich
	Nottingham
	Scunthorpe
	Leeds
	Greenwich
	North Tyneside
	One national seminar was held in Leicester.
	The practical guide "Get A Public Life", published in December, enables others to run similar events.

Public Appointments

Sandra Gidley: To ask the Minister for Women how much has been spent on regional seminars by the Women and Equality Unit on attracting women to public appointments; and if she will make a statement.

Patricia Hewitt: The National Outreach Campaign consisted of eight regional seminars and five national seminars; the total cost of holding these seminars was £57,551.21 (excluding VAT).

TRADE AND INDUSTRY

Embryo Research

Bob Spink: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry how many embryos the Medical Research Council envisages requiring per year for its embryo stem cell bank; and what their planned budget is for the bank.

Patricia Hewitt: The bank will store adult, foetal and embryonic stem cell lines derived by the research community in the UK and overseas. Such lines will be ethically sourced and quality controlled. Embryonic stem cells will be supplied to the bank from IVF embryos donated for research. The MRC does not know how many embryos will be so donated.
	However, it is a condition of the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority licence that all embryonic stem cell lines derived in the UK must be deposited in the bank. It will be a condition of MRC funding for stem cell research that adult, foetal and embryonic stem cell lines generated with such funding must be deposited in the bank. Other UK funders are likely to adopt the same terms and conditions. Deposition in, and access of lines from the UK bank will be overseen by the Steering Committee chaired by Lord Patel. Since the UK bank will provide standardised stem cell lines for research purposes, the need for individual research groups to derive their own stem cell lines will be reduced, thereby minimising the overall number of embryos used.
	The UK stem cell bank is being funded at a level of £2.6 million over three years. MRC will contribute 75 per cent., and the Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council 25 per cent. of these costs.

Embryo Research

Bob Spink: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry how much the MRC has spent on research using human embryos in each the past 20 years.

Patricia Hewitt: The majority of the research on embryos supported by the Medical Research Council involves material collected from animal models; only a small number of projects involve human embryos. Human embryonic tissue is currently used in the study of developmental biology and research on the treatment of disease. MRC does not keep historical figures for spend on such research, but estimates that in the last financial year (2001–02) it spent £0.6 million on research involving or related to human embryos.

E-Mail Addresses

Tim Yeo: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry by what e-mail address members of the public may contact (a) her and (b) each of the Ministers in her Department; and for each e-mail address if she will state (i) the date it became active, and (ii) the number of e-mails received in each month since activation.

Patricia Hewitt: The e-mail addresses are as follows:
	(a) Secretary of State for Trade and Industry—Patricia Hewitt—mpst.hewitt@dti.gsi.gov.uk
	(b) Minister of State for Employment Relations, Industry and the Regions—Alan Johnson—mpst.johnson@dti.gsi.gov.uk
	Minister of State for E-Commerce and Competitiveness—Stephen Timms—mpst.timms@dti.gsi.gov.uk
	Minister of State for Energy and Construction—Brian Wilson—mpst.wilson@dti.gsi.gov.uk
	Minister of State for Trade—Baroness Symons—ministersymons.action@fco.gov.uk
	Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Small Business—Nigel Griffiths—mpst.griffiths@dti.gsi.gov.uk
	Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Competition, Consumer and Markets—Melanie Johnson—Melanie. Johnson.mpst@dti.gsi.gov.uk
	Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Science and Innovation—Lord Sainsbury—mpst.sainsbury@dti.gsi.gov.uk
	(i) Each e-mail address became active upon the appointment of the Minister;
	(ii) This information could not be obtained except at disproportionate cost.

Euratom Research

Llew Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry which United Kingdom companies or organisations have benefited from the European Council Decision 668/2002/Euratom of 3 June 2002, which estimated a European funding area for the sixth framework programme for Euratom research and training activities.

Patricia Hewitt: The United Kingdom Atomic Energy Authority's Culham Science Centre is the only organisation in the UK to receive funding for nuclear fusion research. Some of this funding is used for research by UK universities and the Rutherford-Appleton Laboratory.
	UK research contractors, regulators and industry will benefit from the fission programme by participating in FP6 research projects supported by Euratom. The first call for proposals for these research projects is currently underway and two further calls will follow during the course of FP6.

Renewable Energy Exporters

Malcolm Bruce: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry pursuant to her answer of 30 January 2003, Official Report, column 984W, on renewable energy exporters, if she will provide a breakdown of the renewable energy technologies represented by the three applications for support under the renewable energy initiative of the ECGD.

Patricia Hewitt: ECGD has received applications that could be considered under this initiative in respect of the following renewable energy technologies:
	Mini-hydros
	Offshore wave energy
	Waste to energy
	The initiative comes into effect in April 2003 making ECGD cover available for at least £50 million of projects that meet the minimum risk standards.

TRANSPORT

Belfast City Airport

Roy Beggs: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what assessment he has made of the ability of runway facilities at Belfast City airport to accommodate an increased use by large passenger planes.

David Jamieson: In licensing civil aerodromes in the UK, the Civil Aviation Authority does not specify the type or number of aircraft that can operate from a particular aerodrome. Instead, it ensures that national and international operating and safety standards are complied with. Provided that these standards are met it is a matter for aircraft operators and the aerodrome licensee to be satisfied that the facilities and manning levels match their requirements.

Stretch Limousines

Norman Baker: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what assessment he has made of the environmental impact, with particular reference to (a) emissions and (b) fuel consumption of (i) a stretch limousine and (ii) other types of road vehicle.

David Jamieson: No specific assessment has been made of the environmental impact of stretched limousines. However, indices for regulated pollutants (CO, HC, NOx and PM) and for C02 are given for various classes of road vehicles in Table 2.6. of the Departmental publication "Transport Statistics: Great Britain—2002 Edition".

Stretch Limousines

Norman Baker: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how many stretch limousines have been registered for use on British roads in each year since 1992; and if he will estimate the average distance travelled by each of these vehicles in each of these years.

David Jamieson: The information held by the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency on body types does not distinguish between different categories of limousine. No information is held on the distances travelled by these vehicles.

Air Quality

David Chaytor: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if he will make it his policy to establish a national standard for local authority low emission zones restricting the entry of highly polluting vehicles into air quality management areas; and if he will make a statement.

David Jamieson: The latest guidance issued by DEFRA to support local authorities with their air quality management duties under Part IV of the Environment Act 1995 includes recommendations made by the National Society for Clean Air's Cleaner Transport Forum on proposed standards in low emission zones.

Air Transport (EU Regulations)

Anne McIntosh: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport 
	(1)  what representations he has received concerning the European Commission's Air Transport Draft Regulation COM (2002) 521; and if he will make a statement;
	(2)  what assessment he has made of the impact of Draft Regulation COM (2002) 521; and what the Government's policy is on the draft regulation.

David Jamieson: On 21 October 2002 the Minister for Transport submitted an Explanatory Memorandum on the draft Regulation to both Houses of Parliament. On 11 December 2002 the Minister submitted a Supplementary Explanatory Memorandum to Parliament including a partial regulatory impact assessment assessing the likely effect of the proposal as drafted. The assessment listed eight organisations that, in response to a request by officials, made representations to the Department. They are: the British Air Transport Association, the Board of Airline Representatives in the UK, the General Aviation Manufacturers and Traders Association, the British Helicopter Advisory Board, the Royal Aero Club of the UK, the Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association, the International Union of Aviation Insurers and the Civil Aviation Authority.
	Whilst the Government supports measures to harmonise insurance requirements across the European Community, it has expressed concern that the introduction of mandatory requirements for non-commercial aircraft operators would impose unwarranted costs on that sector of civil aviation. We have also questioned the legality and practicality of the provisions in proposal to overflying aircraft.

Air Travel (Demand)

Norman Baker: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport whether it is his policy to allow anticipated increased demand for air travel to be met.

David Jamieson: This is one of the central questions to which we are seeking responses in our current consultation on the future development of air transport in the United Kingdom. We will set out our policy conclusions in the air transport White Paper later this year.

Congestion Charge

John Redwood: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport in cases where regional strategic guidance includes congestion taxes for a particular town or city, what requirement will be placed on the Council in that place to introduce a congestion charge.

John Spellar: Decisions on whether to introduce such measures and the form they take, are a matter for individual local authorities.

Driver Fatigue

Bob Russell: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what measures he is taking to raise awareness among drivers of the dangers of fatigue with (a) the general public, (b) operators of motor fleets and (c) companies using commercial vehicles and employing travelling salespersons.

David Jamieson: The Department raises awareness of the dangers of falling asleep at the wheel among all drivers by means of national publicity campaigns and advertising. Local authority road safety officers support our campaigns and provide relevant publicity materials to employers within their areas.
	Full details of the Department's driver tiredness campaigns were given in answer to a question from the hon. Member for Bath (Don Foster) on 9 December 2002 [Official Report, column 31W].
	We will be running new radio commercials this Easter. Motorway variable message signs will again carry the "Don't Drive Tired" slogan again. We will also be using lorry back advertising for the first time to remind drivers to take a break. A new public information film will be produced in the spring.

Oil Pollution

David Chaytor: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what steps he will take to ensure that local authorities have up to date oil spill contingency plans in line with the National Contingency Plan following the second report of the Public Accounts Committee.

David Jamieson: The responsibility for responding to pollution at sea lies with the Maritime and Coastguard Agency (MCA) and certain ports and harbours, as laid out in the Merchant Shipping Regulations 1998. However, local authorities will respond to shoreline pollution and have detailed contingency plans to address potential incidents.
	The MCA provides two accredited training courses for local authority emergency planners and operational staff. 'Oil pollution, Contingency Planning and Response' is a five-day course for local authority management staff, run four times a year across the UK. 'Oil Pollution Response', run eight times a year, is a two day hands-on training course in counter pollution for local authority staff, who would expect to be involved supervising beach clean-up operations and protective booming operations.
	The MCA actively encourages local authorities to maintain and update their oil spill contingency plans. The MCA maintains a database of all local authority oil spill plans, and monitors the updating procedures of individual authorities. In addition, local authorities are encouraged to submit their plans for formal review by the MCA's Counter Pollution and Response Branch.

INTERNATIONAL DEVELOPMENT

Iraq

Huw Edwards: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development if she will make a statement on the humanitarian consequences of war against Iraq, with special reference to medical aid.

Clare Short: The people of Iraq are already suffering a humanitarian catastrophe. 60 per cent. of the people in this naturally wealthy and highly educated country are dependent on handouts from the Oil for Food Programme and one-third of children in Baghdad-controlled Iraq are chronically malnourished.
	If the UN authorises military action to force Saddam Hussein to comply with his disarmament obligation, it is essential that great care is taken to minimise any harm to the people who are already very vulnerable. This means very careful targeting of military action, ensuring order is maintained, food distribution is quickly resumed and that health and water and sanitation infrastructure is rehabilitated as soon as possible.
	Planning is in hand for all of this. My greatest worry is that there is not yet agreement that the UN should have the lead role in a post conflict Iraq. Without this there would be significant legal and other difficulties for the international humanitarian system to work.

SCOTLAND

Annual Report

Norman Lamb: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland how much producing her Department's latest Annual Report cost; how many copies were printed; how many copies of it were sold at its cover price; to whom copies of the report have been provided free of charge; and how many copies were provided free of charge.

Helen Liddell: The cost to the Scotland Office of producing the 2002 Departmental Report was £3,869. The number of copies printed for the department was 150. Copies of the report were provided free of charge to the Scottish Affairs Committee, other Government Departments and for use within the Department.
	The Stationery Office determines the number of copies for retail sale and meets the costs of printing and publication. I understand that TSO has sold approximately 300 copies of the report.

Departmental Consultations

Tim Yeo: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland if she will list consultations her Department has conducted since 1997; and when each consultation (a) opened and (b) closed.

Helen Liddell: The information requested is as follows:
	a consultation on the size of the Scottish Parliament was launched on 18 December 2001 with responses invited by 29 March 2002.
	a consultation on Sunday working in Scotland was launched on 19 December 2002 with a deadline for comments by 14 March 2003.

Online Sales/Purchases

Tim Yeo: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland what (a) products, (b) goods and (c) services were (i) bought and (ii) sold online by her Department in each of the last five years.

Helen Liddell: The Scotland Office was established in its present form on 1 July 1999. Since that date, no products, goods or services have been bought or sold on-line by the department.

Sickness Absence

John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland how many days were lost due to sickness absence in the Department in 2002.

Nigel Evans: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland how many working days were lost due to illness in her Department in (a) 2002 and (b) each of the preceding five years.

Helen Liddell: The Scotland Office was established in its present form on 1 July 1999.
	Details of working days lost due to illness in my department are given in the table below.
	
		
			 Dates Working days lost due to illness 
		
		
			 1 January 2002–30 November 2002 651.0 
			 1 January 2001–31 December 2001 746.5 
			 1 January 2000–31 December 2000 442.5 
			 1 July 1999–31 December 1999 299.0

CULTURE MEDIA AND SPORT

Coronation Anniversaries

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what events and programmes were arranged for previous anniversaries of the Coronation of Her Majesty the Queen in (a) 1978 and (b) other years.

Tessa Jowell: Any events to mark the Anniversary of the Coronation in 1978 and other years were arranged as part of The Queen's normal programme of engagements. Similarly, any events to mark the 50th Anniversary of the Coronation this year will be part of The Queen's programme arranged by Buckingham Palace.

Horseracing

Alex Salmond: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what representations she has received regarding the decision by the British Horseracing Board to alter the charges levied on bookmakers relating to receiving pre-race data; and if she will make a statement.

Richard Caborn: We have so far received about a hundred letters on this matter. Decisions by the British Horseracing Board about charges to bookmakers for the use of its data are commercial matters as between the parties; and it would not be appropriate for me to comment on them.

Hospitality

James Gray: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport 
	(1)  what criteria Ministers in her Department use when determining whether to offer hospitality in restaurants to interest groups at public expense; and if she will make a statement;
	(2)  what hospitality has been offered at public expense in the last 12 months, by each Minister in her Department to outside interest groups, broken down by (a) restaurant, (b) recipient and (c) cost in each case;
	(3)  how often Ministers in her Department have received hospitality in restaurants from outside groups in the last 12 months.

Kim Howells: All offers of hospitality are made in accordance with published departmental guidance on financial procedures and propriety, based on the principles set out in Government Accounting. The giving and receiving of hospitality is conducted fully in accordance with the guidance set out in the Ministerial Code, and Guidance on Contacts with Outside Interest Groups including Lobbyists. The detailed information requested is not held centrally, and could only be obtained at disproportionate cost.

Olympics Bid

Adrian Sanders: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what her estimate is of the potential benefits to non-London tourist centres of holding the 2012 Olympics.

Tessa Jowell: The additional tourism benefits of the Olympics and Paralympics outside London and the South East have been estimated at between £100 million and £190 million, reflecting the expected increase in expenditure by overseas and domestic visitors during the period of both the Olympics and Paralympics.
	The estimates do not include any wider or longer-term effects outside London that hosting an Olympics would have on inbound and domestic tourism. Nor have we sought to break down the estimate by individual region. However, as the BTA said in its recent submission to the CMS Select Committee, there can be little doubt that the staging of a successful Olympics would be beneficial in the longer-term for inbound tourism, providing an unparalleled opportunity to showcase the wider UK as well as London. This is a view that has been endorsed by a number of organisations, including Advantage West Midlands and the South West Regional Assembly.

Tourism

Adrian Sanders: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport how many people are employed (a) part-time and (b) full-time in the British tourism industry.

Kim Howells: Since the tourism sector is formed of parts of a diverse set of industries whose businesses serve both tourists and non-tourists, the number of jobs supported by tourism can only be estimated. The latest estimate of total employment in tourism-related industries in Great Britain is 2.2 million in June 2002, of which 1.1 million jobs were part-time.

Tourism

Adrian Sanders: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what estimate she has made of expenditure on domestic tourism in 2002.

Kim Howells: Domestic tourism expenditure on trips with an overnight stay is estimated to have been 22.6 billion for January to October 2002. Data to the end of 2002 will be published in April 2003.
	Data on domestic tourism day trips will be available in summer 2003.
	Both sources will be published on the website www.staruk.org.uk.

DEFENCE

Asylum Accommodation (Daedalus)

Peter Viggers: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what consultations there were between the MoD and the Home Office prior to the announcement by the latter of its interest in developing asylum facilities at Daedalus.

Lewis Moonie: Since November 2002 there has been a variety of contact between the Home Office and the Ministry of Defence about the Daedalus property.
	The Home Office contacted Defence Estates in late November 2002 requesting details of sites that might be available for an inter-governmental transfer to the Home Office.
	In December 2002, the Home Office requested information, together with a site plan, in regard to an area of the Daedalus property, which MOD were considering for potential future disposal. Home Office representatives visited the site on 22 January 2003 and subsequently indicated that a portion of the site was could be of interest to them. My Home Office colleague, Beverly Hughes MP, wrote to me on 10 February 2003 to say that the Daedalus site was potentially suitable for an asylum accommodation centre for up to 400 single men and that the Home Office intended to make an announcement to this effect on February 11.

Decommissioning

Julian Lewis: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will make it his policy to postpone the proposed decommissioning dates for (a) HMS Splendid and (b) HMS Sovereign pending the completion of the first Astute class submarines.

Adam Ingram: I refer the hon Member to the answers I gave on 3 February 2003, Official Report, columns 52W and 67W.

Nerve Gas

Vincent Cable: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what assessment he has made of the (a) effectiveness and (b) appropriateness of disabling nerve agents in conflict situations.

Adam Ingram: The Ministry of Defence assesses the range of threats that the armed forces may face in conflict, including those from chemical weapons. The use of all chemical weapons is prohibited by the Chemical Weapons Convention, which entered into force in April 1997. The Convention also prohibits the use of riot control agents (i.e. temporarily disabling agents) as a method of warfare.

Nuclear-Powered Submarines

Julian Lewis: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will list the locations of each paid-off SSN and former Polaris submarine.

Adam Ingram: pursuant to his reply, 12 February 2003, Official Report, column 747W
	I mistakenly referred to HMS Dreadnought as a Polaris submarine. She is, of course, a Dreadnought Class submarines and never carried Polaris missiles.

RAF Continuous Attitude Survey

Paul Keetch: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many Army personnel indicated in the latest analysed Army continuous attitude survey that they were (a) very satisfied, (b) satisfied, (c) neither satisfied nor dissatisfied, (d) dissatisfied and (e) very dissatisfied when asked about (i) how much they felt valued by the army, (ii) general job satisfaction, (iii) how satisfied they were with management by superior NCOs/WOs, (iv) how satisfied they were with management by officers, (v) working conditions on operations, (vi) working conditions non-operations, (vii) confidence in abilities of immediate superiors, (viii) satisfaction with army life in general, (xi) satisfaction with quality of life, (x) satisfaction with workload, (xi) satisfaction with amount of leave entitlement, (xii) overall amount of training received, (xiii) overall pay, (xiv) army pension arrangements, (xv) welfare arrangements on operational tours and (xvi) welfare support for families; what percentage of those responding to each question each option represents; when the survey was completed; and if he will make a statement.

Lewis Moonie: The questions raised were covered in two separate Continuous Attitude Surveys (CAS), SP2 distributed in August 2001 and SP3 distributed in May 2002 as indicated. Questions asked in SP 2 were not repeated in SP3. The details have been placed in the Library.

RAF Continuous Attitude Survey

Paul Keetch: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many RAF personnel in the latest analysed Royal Air Force continuous attitude survey indicated they (a) strongly agreed, (b) agreed, (c) neither agreed nor disagreed, (d) disagreed, (e) strongly disagreed and (f) didn't know to the statement 'Overstretch is causing serious problems in my working group'; what percentage of those responding to this question each option represents; when the survey was completed; and if he will make a statement.

Lewis Moonie: The latest analysed survey was issued o 2000 RAF personnel on 1 February 2002, and completed by them during February to April 2002. It was published in September 2002.
	In this survey, the responses to the statement 'Overstretch is causing serious problems in my working' are set out in the table below. It is not possible to separate the 'Don't know' from the 'not applicable' responses.
	
		
			  Airmen Officers Total 
		
		
			 Strongly agree
			 Number(1) 347 70 417 
			 Percentage 36.6 32.0 35.7 
			 Agree
			 Number(1) 333 77 410 
			 Percentage 35.1 35.2 35.1 
			 Neither agree nor disagree
			 Number(1) 170 37 207 
			 Percentage 17.9 16.9 17.7 
			 Disagree
			 Number(1) 75 27 102 
			 Percentage 7.9 12.3 8.7 
			 Strongly Disagree
			 Number(1) 10 1 11 
			 Percentage 1.1 0.5. 0.9 
			 Don't know/not applicable
			 Number(1) 13 7 20 
			 Percentage 1.4 3.2 1.7 
			 Total:
			 Number(1) 948 219 1,167 
			 Percentage 100 100 100 
		
	
	(1) Number of people who responded with this answer

RAF Continuous Attitude Survey

Paul Keetch: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many RAF personnel in the latest analysed Royal Air Force continuous attitude survey indicated they (a) strongly agreed, (b) agreed, (c) neither agreed nor disagreed, (d) disagreed, (e) strongly disagreed and (f) didn't know to the statement 'Overstretch is causing serious problems in the RAF as a whole'; what percentage of those responding to this question each option represents; when the survey was completed; and if he will make a statement.

Lewis Moonie: The latest analysed survey was issued to 2,000 RAF personnel on 1 February 2002, and completed by them during February to April 2002. It was published in September 2002.
	In this survey, the responses to the statement 'Overstretch is causing serious problems in the RAF as a whole' are set out in the table. It is not possible to separate the 'Don't know' from the 'not applicable' responses.
	
		
			  Airmen Officers Total 
			  Number(2) Percentage Number(2) Percentage Number(2) Percentage 
		
		
			 Strongly agree 458 48.3 120 54.8 578 49.5 
			 Agree 372 39.2 80 36.5 452 38.7 
			 Neither agree nor disagree 87 9.2 13 5.9 100 8.6 
			 Disagree 10 1.1 2 0.9 12 1.0 
			 Strongly disagree 1 0.1 — — 1 0.1 
			 Don't know/not applicable 20 2.1 4 1.8 24 2.1 
			 Total 948 100 219 100 1,167 100 
		
	
	(2) The number of people who responded with this answer.

RAF Continuous Attitude Survey

Paul Keetch: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many RAF personnel in the latest analysed Royal Air Force continuous attitude survey indicated they (a) strongly agreed, (b) agreed, (c) neither agreed nor disagreed, (d) disagreed, (e) strongly disagreed and (f) didn't know to the statement 'In the past 12 months I have had more than my fair share of separated service/detached duty'; what percentage of those responding to this question each option represents; when the survey was completed; and if he will make a statement.

Lewis Moonie: The latest analysed survey was issued to 2,000 RAF personnel on 1 February 2002, and completed by them during February to April 2002. It was published in September 2002.
	In this survey, the responses to the statement 'In the last 12 months I have had more than my fair share of separated service/detached duty' are set out in the following table. It is not possible to separate the 'Don't know' from the 'not applicable' responses.
	
		
			  Airmen Officers Total 
		
		
			 Strongly agree
			 Number 76 14 90 
			 Percentage 8.0 6.4 7.7 
			 
			 Agree
			 Number 163 30 193 
			 Percentage 17.2 13.7 16.6 
			 Neither agree nor disagree   
			 Number 297 60 357 
			 Percentage 31.4 27.4 30.6 
			   
			 Disagree
			 Number 206 61 267 
			 Percentage 21.8 27.9 22.9 
			 
			 Strongly disagree
			 Number 63 28 91 
			 Percentage 6.7 12.8 7.8 
			 
			 Don't know/not applicable   
			 Number 141 26 167 
			 Percentage 14.9 11.9 14.3 
			 
			 Total
			 Number 946 219 1,165 
			 Percentage 100 100 100

RAF Continuous Attitude Survey

Paul Keetch: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many Naval personnel in the latest analysed Royal Navy continuous attitude survey indicated that they were (a) very satisfied, (b) satisfied, (c) neither satisfied nor dissatisfied, (d) dissatisfied, (e) very dissatisfied regarding (i) adequacy of training for service job, (ii) current minimum time ashore, (iii) effect of their career on the career of spouse/partner, (iv) level of job satisfaction, (v) pay in general (vi), total remuneration package, (vii), amount of annual leave allowance (viii) medical and dental facilities for themselves, (ix) enjoyment of service life, (x) amount of separation from family and friends and (xi) rates and terms of pensions; what percentage of those responding to each question each option represents; when the survey was completed; and if he will make a statement.

Lewis Moonie: The information requested is provided in the table.
	
		Royal Navy
		
			  Very satisfied Satisfied Neither satisfiednor dissatisfied Dissatisfied 
		
		
			 Adequacy of training for your service job 97 11.2 502 58.2 148 17.1 95 11.0 
			 Current Minimum Time Ashore (MTA) 87 10.1 279 32.3 236 27.3 152 17.6 
			 Effect of your career on the career of your spouse/partner 9 10 132 153 346 40.1 211 24.4 
			 Level of job satisfaction (you expect in the future) 32 37 332 38.5 26.3 30.5 180 20.9 
			 Your pay in general 40 4.6 312 36.2 191 22.1 224 26.0 
			 Your total remuneration package 20 2.3 293 34.0 288 33.4 206 23.9 
			 Amount of annual leave allowance (30 working days) 51 5.9 491 56.9 208 24.1 92 10.7 
			 Medical and Dental facilities for yourself 118 13.7 510 59.1 110 12.7 82 9.5 
			 Your enjoyment of service life 91 10.5 372 43.1 214 24.8 142 16.5 
			 Amount of separation from family and friends 3 0.3 124 14.4 292 33.8 267 30.9 
			 The rates and terms of pensions 48 5.6 313 36.3 325 37.7 95 11.0 
		
	
	Note
	From the General Report of the RN's Continuous Attitude Survey completed in August 2002.
	
		
			  Very dissatisfied Nil response 
			  Number % age Number % age 
		
		
			 Adequacy of training for your service job 17 2.0 4 0.5 
			 Current Minimum Time Ashore (MTA) 84 9.7 25 2.9 
			 Effect of your career on the career of your spouse/partner 87 10.1 78 9.0 
			 Level of job satisfaction (you expect in the future) 48 5.6 8 0.9 
			 Your pay in general 89 10.3 7 0.8 
			 Your total remuneration package 46 5.3 10 1.2 
			 Amount of annual leave allowance (30 working days) 17 2.0 4 0.5 
			 Medical and Dental facilities for yourself 41 4.8 2 0.2 
			 Your enjoyment of service life 39 45 5 0.6 
			 Amount of separation from family and friends 154 17.8 23 2.7 
			 The rates and terms of pensions 44 5.1 38 4.4

RAF Continuous Attitude Survey

Paul Keetch: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many Naval personnel in the latest analysed Royal Navy continuous attitude survey indicated that they (a) strongly agreed, (b) agreed, (c) neither agreed nor disagreed, (d) disagreed and (e) strongly disagreed with the statements (i) in your own opinion the service is more sexist than society as a whole, (ii) in your own opinion the service is more racist than society as a whole and (iii) I trust my senior officers to do the right thing; what percentage of those responding to each question each option represents; when the survey was completed; and if he will make a statement.

Lewis Moonie: The information requested is provided in the table below:
	
		Royal Navy
		
			  Strongly agreed Agreed Neither Agreed norDisagreed Disagreed Strongly Disagreed Nil Response 
			 Question Number Percentage Number Percentage Number Percentage Number Percentage Number Percentage Number Percentage 
		
		
			 In your opinion the service is more sexist than society as a whole1 41 4.8 178 20.6 191 22.1 295 34.2 150 17.4 8 0.9 
			 In your opinion the service is more racist than society as a whole(3) 11 1.3 72 8.3 157 18.2 369 42.8 245 28.4 9 1.0 
			 I trust my senior officers to do the right thing(4) 20 2.3 305 35.3 205 23.7 248 28.7 65 7.5 21 2.4 
		
	
	Notes:
	(3) From the General Report of the RN's Continuous Attitude Survey completed in August 2002.
	(4) From the Collective Performance section of the RN's Continuous Attitude Survey completed in November 2002. (The General Report for this survey has yet to be analyzed).

RAF Continuous Attitude Survey

Paul Keetch: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many RAF personnel in the latest analysed Royal Air Force continuous attitude survey said their work load was (a) too high, (b) about right and (c) too low; what percentage of those responding to this question each option represents, when the survey was completed; and if he will make a statement.

Lewis Moonie: The latest analysed survey was issued to 2,000 RAF personnel on 1 February 2002, and completed by them during February to April 2002. It was published in September 2002.
	The responses to the question in which individuals were requested to assess their current work load (excluding secondary duties) are set out in the following table.
	Work load (excluding secondary duties) is assessed as:
	
		
			  Airmen Officers Total 
		
		
			 Too high
			 Number(5) 240 78 318 
			 Percentage 25.8 35.9 27.7 
			 
			 About right
			 Number(5) 620 130 750 
			 Percentage 66.6 59.9 65.3 
			 
			 Too low
			 Number(5) 71 9 80 
			 Percentage 7.6 4.1 7.0 
			 
			 Total
			 Number(5) 931 217 1,148 
			 Percentage 100 100 100 
		
	
	(5) The number of people who responded with this answer.

RAF Continuous Attitude Survey

Paul Keetch: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many RAF personnel in the latest analysed Royal Air Force continuous attitude survey said they worked each week on average (a) 30 hours or less, (b) 31–35 hours, (c) 36–40 hours, (d) 41–45 hours, (e) 46–50 hours, (f) 51–60 hours and (g) over 60 hours, what percentage of those responding to this question each option represents; when the survey was completed; and if he will make a statement.

Lewis Moonie: The latest analysed survey was issued to 2,000 RAF personnel on 1 February 2002, and completed by them during February to April 2002. It was published in September 2002.
	In this survey, the responses to the question 'Over the last three months, approximately how many hours have you worked each week on average, including lunch breaks?', are set out in the following table:
	
		
			 Hours Airmen Officers Total 
		
		
			 30 or less
			 Number(6) 19 4 23 
			 Percentage 2.0 1.8 2.0 
			 31–35
			 Number(6) 36 4 40 
			 Percentage 3.8 1.8 3.4 
			 36–40
			 Number(6) 188 20 208 
			 Percentage 19.9 9.2 17.9 
			 41–45
			 Number(6) 342 71 413 
			 Percentage 36.3 32.6 35.6 
			 46–50
			 Number(6) 223 68 291 
			 Percentage 23.6 31.2 25.1 
			 51–60
			 Number(6) 87 40 127 
			 Percentage 9.2 18.3 10.9 
			 Over 60
			 Number(6) 48 11 59 
			 Percentage 5.1 5.0 5.1 
			 Total
			 Number 943 218 1,161 
			 Percentage 100 100 100 
		
	
	(6) Number of people who responded with this answer

RAF Continuous Attitude Survey

Paul Keetch: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many RAF personnel in the latest analysed Royal Air Force continuous attitude survey indicated that they intended to opt for further service if they had the opportunity; what percentage of those responding to this question each reply option represents; when the survey was completed; and if he will make a statement.

Lewis Moonie: The latest analysed survey was issued to 2,000 RAF personnel on 1 February 2002, and completed by them during February to April 2002. It was published in September 2002.
	In this survey, the responses to the question 'Do you intend to opt for further service if you have the opportunity?' are set out in the following table.
	
		
			  Airmen Officers Total 
		
		
			 Yes
			 Number(7) 347 35 382 
			 Percentage 36.5 15.9 32.6 
			 
			 Perhaps
			 Number(7) 335 61 396 
			 Percentage 35.3 27.7 33.8 
			 
			 No
			 Number(7) 210 41 251 
			 Percentage 22.1 18.6 21.5 
			 
			 N/a—already committed to a fullcareer to age 55
			 Number(7) 58 83 141 
			 Percentage 6.1 37.7 12.1 
			 
			 Total
			 Number(7) 950 220 1,170 
			 Percentage 100 100 100 
		
	
	(7) The number of people who responded with this answer.

RAF Continuous Attitude Survey

Paul Keetch: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many RAF personnel in the latest analysed Royal Air Force continuous attitude survey indicated that life in the RAF (a) was much better than expected, (b) was better than expected, (c) was as expected, (d) was worse than expected, (e) was much worse than expected and (f) has no expectations; what percentage of those responding to the question each option represents; when the survey was completed; and if he will make a statement.

Lewis Moonie: The latest analysed survey was issued to 2,000 RAF personnel on 1 February 2002, and completed by them during February to April 2002. It was published in September 2002.
	In this survey, the responses to the question 'Overall, how has your life in the RAF been, compared to what you expected?' are set out in the following table:
	
		
			  Airmen Officers Total 
		
		
			 Much better than I expected it to be
			 Number(8) 59 14 73 
			 Percentage 6.2 6.4 6.2 
			 
			 Better than I expected it to be
			 Number(8) 253 59 312 
			 Percentage 26.7 26.8 26.7 
			 
			 As I expected it to be
			 Number(8) 367 104 471 
			 Percentage 38.7 47.3 40.3 
			 Worse than I expected it to be
			 Number(8) 185 36 221 
			 Percentage 19.5 16.4 18.9 
			 
			 Much worse than I expected it to be
			 Number(8) 35 2 37 
			 Percentage 3.7 0.9 3.2 
			 
			 I had no expectations
			 Number(8) 50 5 55 
			 Percentage 5.3 2.3 4.7 
			 
			 Total
			 Number(8) 949 220 1,169 
			 Percentage 100 100 100 
		
	
	(8) The number of people who responded with this answer.

Royal Fleet Auxiliary

Paul Keetch: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will list (a) the date of original build completion, (b) the date of acceptance into service, (c) the anticipated date of decommissioning, (d) the number of crew, (e) the stores carrying capacity where appropriate and (f) the ownership of (i) RFA Diligence, (ii) RFA Grey Rover, (iii) RFA Gold Rover, (iv) RFA Black Rover, (v) RFA Brambleleaf, (vi) RFA Bayleaf, (vii) RFA Orangeleaf, (viii) RFA Oakleaf, (ix) RFA Fort Rosalie, (x) RFA Fort Austin, (xi) RFA Fort Victoria, (xii) RFA Fort George, (xiii) RFA Argus, (xiv) RFA Sir Bedivere, (xv) RFA Sir Geraint, (xvi) RFA Sir Percivale, (xvii) RFA Sir Tristram, (xviii) RFA Sea Crusader and (xix) RFA Sea Centurion.

Adam Ingram: The information requested is contained in the following table:
	
		
			 Ship Build completion date Date of acceptance into service Planned decommission date Crew complement Approximate stores capacity Ownership 
		
		
			 Diligence 1981 1984 2006 53 RFA77 Embarked force Fuel: 1,400 sq m MOD 
			 Grey Rover 1970 1970 2007 54 RFA Fuel: 6,000 sq mFresh water: 300 sq mOil: 66,000 litres MOD 
			 Gold Rover 1974 1974 2007 54 RFA Fuel: 5,500 sq mFresh water: 300 sq mOil 66,000 litres MOD 
			 Black Rover 1974 1974 2007 53 RFA Fuel: 6,000 sq mFresh water: 300 sq mOil: 66,000 litres MOD 
			 Brambleleaf 1976 1980 2009 58 RFA Fuel: 31,000 sq mFresh water: 1,400 sq m MOD 
			 Bayleaf 1982 1982 2009 58 RFA Fuel: 28,700 sq mFresh water: 1,400 sq m Lombards Leasing Services 
			 Orangeleaf 1975 1984 2008 58 RFA Fuel: 31,000 sq mFresh water 1,400 sq m Lloyds Industrial Leasing Ltd. 
			 Oakleaf 1981 1986 2015 36 RFA Fuel: 38,700 sq mFresh water: 1,300 sq m James Fisher Ltd. 
			 Fort Rosalie 1978 1978 2013 106 RFA12 RN28 Civilian Ammunition, food and general Naval stores: 10,100 sq m MOD 
			 Fort Austin 1979 1979 2014 106 RFA12 RN26 Civilian Ammunition, food and general naval stores: 10,100 sq m MOD 
			 Ford Victoria 1993 1994 2019 96 RFA13 RN23 Civilian Fuel: 12,000 sq mFresh water: 370 sq mOil: 137,000 litresAmmunition, food and general Naval stores: 6,400 sq m MOD 
			 Fort George 1993 1994 2019 95 RFA13 RN28 Civilian Fuel: 12,000 sq mFresh water: 370 sq mOil: 136,000 sq mAmmunition, food and general Naval stores: 5,900 sq m MOD 
			 Argus 1981 1988 2008 82 RFA69 Embarked force Fuel: 3,700 sq m MOD 
			 Sir Bedivere 1967Ship LifeExtensionProgramme1998 1967 2011 59 RFA352 Embarked force Ammunition and cargo: 660 sq m vehicles: 12 Challenger tanks, 31 large vehicles, 56 Land Rovers or 26 cargo containers on tank deck; 19 large vehicles, 50 Land Rovers or 20 cargo containers on vehicle deck MOD 
			 Sir Geraint 1967 1967 2004 52 RFA250 embarked force Ammunition and cargo: 600 sq m vehicles: 14 Challenger tanks, 23 large vehicles, 62 Land Rovers or 20 cargo containers on tank deck; 34 large vehicles, 63 Land Rovers or 30 cargo containers on vehicle deck MOD 
			 Sir Percivale 1968 1968 2005 52 RFA301 Embarked force Ammunition and cargo: 600 sq m vehicles: 14 Challenger tanks, 23 large vehicles, 62 Land Rovers or 20 cargo containers on tank deck; 34 large vehicles, 63 Land Rovers or 30 cargo containers on vehicle deck MOD 
			 Sir Tristram 1967 1967 2004 51 RFA238 embarked force Ammunition and cargo: 600 sq m vehicles: 12 Challenger tanks, 56 Land Rovers or 26 cargo containers on tank deck; 26 cargo containers on tank deck; 31 large vehicles, 67 Land Rovers or 33 cargo containers on vehicle deck MOD 
			 Sea Crusader 1996 1996 2003 18 RFA 2,300 lane metres capacity Nouvelles Orientations 
		
	
	Note:
	Sea Centurion was leased from Ocean Arrow and was returned to her owners in 2002.

Royal Fleet Auxiliary

Paul Keetch: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what plans he has to (a) replace and (b) add to vessels in the RFA fleet; and if he will make a statement.

Adam Ingram: The Royal Navy decommissioned two O-class RFA Fleet tankers during financial year 2000–01: RFA Olwen (commissioned in 1965) and RFA Olna (commissioned in 1966). Two new Wave-class Auxiliary Oilers (AO) RFA Wave Knight and RFA Wave Ruler are expected to enter service in early spring this year.
	On current plans four of the five Landing Ships Logistics, RFA Sir Geraint, Sir Tristram Sir Percivale and Sir Galahad are expected to be replaced by four larger and more capable Bay Class vessels in 2004 and 2005.1 also refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave on 10 February 2003, Official Report, column 514W, to the hon. Member for New Forest East (Dr. Lewis).

Ships (Decommissioning)

Richard Younger-Ross: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what navy ships have been decommissioned since 1997; and what their final destination was.

Adam Ingram: A total of 31 Navy ships have been decommissioned since 1997. This figure includes three Royal Fleet Auxiliary ships.
	
		
			 Navy shipsdecommissioned since1997 Final destination 
		
		
			 HMS Peacock Philippines 
			 HMS Plover Philippines 
			 HMS Starling Philippines 
			 HMS Birmingham Scrap (Commercial Sale) 
			 HMS Battleaxe Brazil 
			 HMS Boxer Not yet known 
			 HMS Beaver Scrap (Commercial Sale) 
			 HMS Brave Not yet known 
			 HMS London Romania 
			 HMS Bicester Greece 
			 HMS Berkeley Greece 
			 HMS Orkney Trinidad and Tobago 
			 HMS Orwell Guyana 
			 HMS Blackwater Brazil 
			 HMS Spey Brazil 
			 HMS Arun Brazil 
			 HMS Itchen Brazil 
			 HMS Herald Commercial Sale 
			 HMS Shetland Bangladesh 
			 HMS Alderney Bangladesh 
			 HMS Intrepid Not yet known 
			 HMS Bulldog Commercial Sale 
			 HMS Cromer Renamed Hindostan and redesignated fortraining use  
			 HMS Coventry Romania 
			 HMS Beagle Commercial Sale 
			 HMS Fearless Not yet known 
			 HMS Sheffield Not yet known 
			 HMY Britannia Exhibition, Port of Leith, Edinburgh 
			 RFA Olna Scrap (Commercial Sale) 
			 FRA Olwen Scrap (Commercial Sale) 
			 RFA Resource Commercial Sale

Sierra Leone

James Gray: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many British service personnel are stationed in Sierra Leone; what changes in numbers have taken place in the last month; and if he will make a statement on the current military situation in Sierra Leone.

Adam Ingram: On 31 July 2002 the security situation in Sierra Leone was judged to be benign enough to end Operation Silkman (the overarching operation for United Kingdom forces in Sierra Leone), leaving a self-sustaining UK-led International Military Advisory and Training Team (IMATT). The IMATT currently involves some 120 personnel, comprising 108 UK personnel plus a number of internationals. Six additional UK personnel have been assigned to IMATT within the last month.
	To display our continued commitment to the settlement process in Sierra Leone on 21 February we deployed a Company Group from 2nd Battalion The Royal Gurkha Rifles plus HQ and supporting elements (eg logistics and medical)—in total around 310 people. HMS Iron Duke and RFA Black Rover are also planned to deploy to Sierra Leone waters in the next few weeks as a further demonstration of UK commitment.
	The security situation in Sierra Leone is satisfactory. This deployment demonstrates the UK's continued support to the Government of Sierra Leone, and our ability to conduct such deployments rapidly and at short notice, notwithstanding our involvement in operations elsewhere in the world.
	The UK also provides the Chief Of Staff, six HQ staff officers and 15 Military Observers to the United Nations Mission in Sierra Leone (UNAMSIL).

ENVIRONMENT FOOD AND RURAL AFFAIRS

Combined Heat and Power

David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what financial help is available to producers who wish to (a) supply and (b) use combined heat and power.

Elliot Morley: The Government's draft Strategy for combined heat and power (CHP) to 2010, consulted on last year and available in the Library to the House, details the range of Government support measures currently in place for CHP. The main measures include:
	Climate Change Levy exemption on fuel inputs and, pending the outcome of a State Aid application, on all Good Quality CHP electricity outputs;
	Eligibility for Enhanced Capital Allowances;
	The £50 million, two-year, Community Energy grant programme; and
	Reduction in VAT on certain grant-funded domestic micro-CHP installations.
	The Energy White Paper, published on 24 February, set out the following further range of measures to support CHP.
	Requirement for significant evidence that power station consent applicants have considered all economically viable options for CHP and community heating.
	Emphasise the benefits of CHP and community heating whenever planning or sustainable development guidance is introduced or reviewed.
	Work with Ofgem to ensure a level playing field under NETA for smaller generators, including CHP.
	Set targets for use of CHP in the Government Estate.
	Explore incentivising CHP within any expansion of the domestic Energy Efficiency Commitment from 2005.
	Support field trials designed to evaluate the benefits of micro-CHP.
	Invite the Energy Saving Trust and the Carbon Trust to review their current and future programmes to ensure they reinforce delivery of our CHP target.
	Work on a framework for pilot projects under the UK Emissions Trading Scheme for which CHP projects may be eligible.

Combined Heat and Power

Mr. Gareth Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what assessment she has made of the change in use of CHP by companies covered by climate change agreements; and if she will make a statement.

Michael Meacher: pursuant to his answer, 18 December 2002, Official Report, c. 800W
	My answer was sent in error, referring to HFC as opposed to CHP. The answer below corrects the original.
	There has been no assessment made of the change in use of CHP by companies covered by climate change agreements. The agreements set targets for improvements in energy efficiency, which in some cases take account of the potential for CHP in the facility. In other cases, operators are required to make an assessment of the potential for CHP, which may result in a change to their targets. Operators are free to meet their targets in a range of ways.

Big Cats

Norman Baker: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how many sightings there have been since June 2001 purporting to be of big cats, broken down by county; what steps have been taken to investigate these; and on how many occasions it has been concluded that a big cat probably was present.

Elliot Morley: Big cats, such as tigers, lions, cheetahs, leopards or puma, are not native to the UK and are not naturally found in the wild in this country. There are widespread and frequent reported possible sightings but, despite investigations, the Department is not aware of any confirmed instances of big cats of unknown origin being found out of captivity in England in the last 20 years. The lack of hard evidence (such as captured animals, corpses or photographs) is hard to reconcile with the number of reported sightings, unless people are genuinely but frequently mistaken with their identification.
	The Department does investigate claims of big cat sightings where there is a potential risk to possible livestock predation. Where livestock deaths are involved and it is likely that hard evidence could be obtained to identify the predator, a field visit may be conducted. However, the Department does not systematically record all alleged sightings.
	Since June 2001, the Department's Rural Development Service (RDS) have had 22 cases of alleged big cats reported to them connected to possible livestock predation and where there was potentially hard evidence to follow up. There have been two field visits in relation to these reports. The counties for these reports were: Buckinghamshire; Cornwall; Devon (three); Essex (three); Kent; Norfolk; North Somerset (two); North Yorkshire; Oxfordshire; Shropshire; Staffordshire; Suffolk; Surrey (two); Warwickshire; West Midlands; and Wiltshire. In many cases the details of the report provide insufficient circumstantial evidence to justify the expense of a field visit. However, should a field visit be deemed necessary, a trained wildlife biologist carries out detailed searches for various types of evidence such as examining the body in the field for evidence of how it had been killed or checking for footprints. In none of the field visits could any evidence be found to confirm the presence of big cats.
	Release of big cats into the wild is prohibited under the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981 and possession of these species is regulated under the Dangerous Wild Animals Act 1976. If there is believed to be a public safety issue, for example from an escaped big cat, then this is a matter for the police.

Departmental Budget

Norman Baker: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs if she will list the principal components of the changes in the budget of her Department from 2002–03 to 2005–06; and if she will make a statement.

Alun Michael: Defra's budgets for 2002–03 and the 2002 Spending Review years (2003–04 to 2005–06) are as follows:
	
		£ million
		
			  2002–03 2003–04 2004–05 2005–06 
		
		
			 Resource budget 2,185 2,492 2,452 2,496 
			 Capital budget 241 316 344 354 
			 Total departmental expenditure limit(9) 2,426 2,808 2,796 2,850 
		
	
	(9) Full resource budgeting basis, net of depreciation.
	Spending by the Department in 2005–06 will be more than £400 million higher than in 2002–03, supporting a programme of reform. It fulfils the Government's pledge to introduce a significant programme of measures to move the food and farming industries to a long-term sustainable basis, to create thriving and prosperous rural economies and communities and to improve the environment. And it takes full account of the Department's lead role in promoting sustainable development across Government for the good of our citizens, both now and in the future.

Departmental Budget

Norman Baker: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what her total departmental budget is under the Department Expenditure Limit set in the Comprehensive Spending Review of 2002 in each year from 2001–02 to 2005–06; and how much within each year has been allocated by activity and to each executive agency, broken down by (a) resource and (b) capital.

Alun Michael: The results of the 2002 Spending Review for Defra are as follows:
	
		£ million
		
			  2003–04 2004–05 2005–06 
		
		
			 Resource Budget 2,492 2,452 2,496 
			 Capital Budget 316 344 354 
			 Total Departmental Expenditure Limit(10) 2,808 2,796 2,850 
		
	
	(10) Full resource budgeting basis, net of depreciation.
	Details of allocated budgets for 2003–04 to 2005–06 will be published in the spring 2003 Departmental Report. The information will include how budgets are allocated to deliver the Department's functions and objectives.
	The Departmental budgets for 2001–02 and 2002–03 do not form part of Spending Review 2002. However, budget information for these two years, by business area, is provided in the following table.
	
		Departmental expenditure limit -- £000
		
			  Resources Capital 
		
		
			 Core-Defra by business area   
			 2001–02   
			 Animal Health and Welfare 163,664 9,946 
			 Environment 319,463 264,569 
			 Food, Farming and Fisheries 89,059 11,373 
			 Finance, Planning and Resources 10,260 522 
			 Legal Services 6,562 30 
			 Land Use and Rural Affairs 287,615 155,784 
			 Operations and Service Delivery (inc foot and mouth eradication) 499,133 4,403 
			 Policy and Corporate Strategy 3,182 0 
			 Science 143,616 10,944 
			
			 Agencies   
			 Centre for Environment, Fisheries and Aquaculture Science -3,226 13,130 
			 Central Science Laboratory -2,453 1,953 
			 Pesticides Safety Directorate -2,712 210 
			 Veterinary Laboratories Agency -7,375 2,206 
			 Veterinary Medicines Directorate -691 200 
			 Rural Payments Agency (inc foot and mouth eradication) 449,536 19,510 
			 Total 1,955,633 494,780 
			
			 2002–03   
			 Animal Health and Welfare 169,907 17,226 
			 Environment 409,767 297,685 
			 Food, Farming and Fisheries 106,949 12,014 
			 Finance, Planning and Resources 10,288 1,954 
			 Legal Services 8,318 19 
			 Land Use and Rural Affairs 291,060 170,993 
			 Operations and Service Delivery (inc foot and mouth eradication) 290,643 24,368 
			 Policy and Corporate Strategy 5,081 0 
			 Science 142,624 13,036 
			
			 Agencies   
			 Centre for Environment, Fisheries and Aquaculture Science -3,253 10,135 
			 Central Science Laboratory -1,413 1,846 
			 Pesticides Safety Directorate -2,781 332 
			 Veterinary Laboratories Agency -9,540 13,819 
			 Veterinary Medicines Directorate -1,057 300 
			 Rural Payments Agency (inc foot and mouth eradication) 436,117 37,789 
			 Total 1,852,710 601,516

Drinking Water

Norman Baker: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what (a) percentage and (b) gross volume of water intended for drinking purposes was tested for (i) mineral content and (ii) chemical content in the last year for which figures are available, broken down by water company supplier.

Elliot Morley: All public water supplies are tested for the most important minerals, namely calcium and magnesium and for 34 other chemicals or group of chemicals. All of the results are required to be put on public records by water companies, and a summary is published in the Annual Report of the Drinking Water Inspectorate.

Farmers (Administrative Workload)

Lindsay Hoyle: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what plans she has to reduce the administrative burden on farmers.

Elliot Morley: holding answer 24 February 2003
	The Government's Regulatory Reform Action Plan issued in February 2002 included 59 entries covering all aspects of Defra's responsibility. Many of these will be implemented over the next two years; others will be more long term. They involve changes to EC legislation, major reviews of whole areas of enforcement, inspection and information handling to ease the burden on farmers. We have already had some success, for example from April 2002 inspectors have been carrying out combined bovine risk analysis inspections required by the four IACS cattle schemes. We have introduced simpler rules for sheep producer groups making them easier to understand.
	Some regulation of agriculture is unavoidable if Defra is to safeguard the environment, public and animal health and public funds. However, our goal is to keep regulation to the minimum and find ways of streamlining the bureaucratic burden that regulation often imposes. We have a long-term strategy (2007) to introduce risk-based environment regulation across all sectors including agriculture. New risk- assessments, standardised permits better reporting arrangements will keep charges down and reduce the bureaucracy of regulation.
	We are working towards an integrated solution to the problems of regulation and agriculture by developing a whole farm approach. This is a strategy that will be developed in close consultation with industry and other stakeholders and will maximise the benefits of major investments in new IT systems, by bringing together all information held by Defra and other agencies . This will be available to farmers and growers for business planning, and to government to streamline enforcement and tailor advice and guidance to farmers' individual circumstances.

Sustainable Energy Projects

Andrew George: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what assessment she has made of the progress made by Government assisted projects to develop area based (a) sustainable energy projects and (b) domestic energy savings and health initiatives.

Elliot Morley: We are making good progress with these projects. The majority of them operate on a national basis, providing assistance to households and communities across the country.
	To encourage sustainable energy projects:
	We are spending £50 million over two years on the UK wide Community Energy programme which promotes community heating. So far £8.5m of grants have been approved. Two of these grants have been for innovative energy from waste schemes.
	The Energy Crops Scheme has allocated £650,000 of grants to promote the establishment of energy crops in England.
	We fund the Countryside Agency's Community Renewables Initiative, which promotes the establishment of local renewable energy schemes in England.
	The DTI fund both the UK wide Bio Energy Capital Grants Scheme and the UK wide £10 million Clear Skies initiative. Both are relatively new initiatives. The Bio Energy Capital Grants scheme aims to ensure the development of 100MW biomass heating provision at all scales, whilst Clear Skies provides advice and support for the installation of household and renewable community renewable schemes.
	To encourage domestic energy savings and health initiatives:
	We fund the Warm Front grant scheme which assisted over 400,000 households living in Fuel Poverty by installing energy efficiency measures. This indicates that the Government is making good progress toward meeting its target of assisting 600,000 homes by 2004.
	The Government has established the Energy Efficiency Commitment. The Commitment requires electricity and gas suppliers to achieve targets for the promotion of improvements in energy efficiency, with an emphasis on helping lower income customers. The overall target on all suppliers is a combined saving of 62 fuel-standardised terawatt hours.
	Defra and DTI are funding a pilot Warm Zones initiative in five areas in England. The zones attempt to identify all fuel poor households in an area, and ensure that existing schemes are used to improve the energy efficiency of those homes. The pilot is being evaluated at present and an interim report is expected shortly.

Waste Inspections

Norman Baker: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how many inspections were carried out at industrial and waste sites by each individual Environment Agency office in (a) 1997 and (b) 2001; and if she will make a statement.

Michael Meacher: Until recently, the Agency has required its regions to report only the annual inspection total for the region as a whole. The regional inspection figures for 1997 and 2001 are as follows:
	
		
			  Industrial Waste 
			 Region 1997–98 2001–02 1997–98 2001–02 
		
		
			 Anglian 978 616 17,432 13,919 
			 Midlands 850 571 24,895 17,237 
			 North East 1,211 1,150 23,278 17,784 
			 North West 806 646 20,530 13,503 
			 Southern 418 298 11,487 5,515 
			 South West 394 238 15,410 10,206 
			 Thames 343 308 18,950 11,967 
			 Wales 583 413 8,228 6,826 
		
	
	These figures reflect the Agency's move towards a more risk based approach to inspection, with fewer, more in-depth visits targeted on those sites with the greatest potential to harm the environment.

Water Management

David Chaytor: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what percentage of significant consents to discharge trade effluent to watercourses were reviewed by the Environment Agency in (a) 2001 and (b) 2002.

Elliot Morley: The Environment Agency reviewed 10 per cent. of significant trade effluent consents for discharges to watercourses in 2001 and 8 per cent. in 2002.

Water Pollution

Norman Baker: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how many recorded incidents of pollution caused by leaking sewerage pipes there have been, broken down by statutory undertaker in each year since 1992.

Elliot Morley: Defra does not hold figures on sewage pollution incidents, and while the Environment Agency's database contains figures for pollution incidents for the last two years, it is not possible to identify separately those attributable to leaking sewers.

Water Pollution

Norman Baker: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what assessment has been made of the environmental impact of (a) fat, (b) oils, (c) fuel and (d) other pollutants being poured into drainage and sewerage systems.

Elliot Morley: The environmental impact will depend on the quantity of substance entering the drainage or sewerage system, and in the case of sewerage systems the extent to which the treatment plant can accommodate the load. Depending on the individual circumstance the impact can range from nil to significant, depending on what degree of intervention, prevention or mitigation is possible or achieved.
	The Environment Agency records and reports on incidents of pollution. It also collects and publishes data on annual releases via authorised discharges of some 150 individual pollutants to the environment and to sewerage systems.
	The Agency has worked with the Water Industry to identify and quantify sources of releases into sewerage systems. The environmental impact arising from these releases is not currently systematically assessed. However, work is underway that could enable the potential impact of emissions on environmental systems to be recorded. The research is expected to be completed in early 2004.
	The Environment Agency has published a report on Oil in the Environment (Oil and Gas in the Environment. 1998). This gives an assessment of the significance of oil as an environmental pollutant.

EDUCATION AND SKILLS

Medical Students (Debt)

Chris Grayling: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what estimate he has made of the average debt level that a medical student would incur during his or her training as a result of the Government's proposals for higher education.

Charles Clarke: The level of loan taken out by medical students will depend on their individual circumstances and choices, including the extent to which they work while in higher education.

A-Levels

David Chaytor: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what the average A level points score was for (a) school sixth forms, (b) sixth form colleges and (c) general further education colleges in each of the last three years.

David Miliband: The average GCE/VCE A/AS and AGNVQ point scores achieved by 17 year old students in 1999–2001 (the most recent three years for which data are available):
	
		
			  2001(11) 2000 1999 
		
		
			 All schools 19.9 18.7 18 
			 Sixth form colleges 19.3 17.4 17.4 
			 Other FE Sector colleges 14.2 11.2 11.3 
			 All FE Sector colleges (sixth forms and other FE) 16.9 14.3 14.4 
			 Schools and FE Sector colleges 18.9 17.2 17.2 
		
	
	(11) Figures for 2001 are not directly comparable to 1999 and 2000 as they include changes introduced as part of the Qualifying for Success reforms in September 2000. Under these reforms, students are encouraged to take a wide range of subjects in their first year of post-16 study, with students taking between one and five Advanced Subsidiaries and progressing three of these on to full A levels in their second year. These changes have resulted in an increase of students' average point scores in 2001.

Adult Education Courses

Tim Boswell: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what extra contribution will be sought from fees for adult education courses with the new learning and skills funding formula for further education colleges.

Charles Clarke: The operation of the Learning and Skills Council's funding system is the responsibility of the Council. John Harwood, the Council's Chief Executive, will write to the hon. Member providing the information requested and a copy of his reply will be placed in the Library.

Higher Education (Top-up Fees)

Paul Holmes: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what assessment his Department made of the deterrent effects to students of imposing top-up fees on shortage subjects in drawing up the proposals in the policy document, "The Future of Higher Education"; and if he will make a statement.

Charles Clarke: The Government are not imposing fees on any higher education institution, course or subject—rather, we are giving universities the freedom to set their own fees, between £0 and £3,000.

Higher Education (Academic Merit)

Tim Boswell: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what guidance he is issuing to higher education institutions on the assessment of academic merit without reference to social or cultural factors affecting an individual.

Charles Clarke: It is not for Government to prescribe university policies for which universities are themselves responsible. We look to them to ensure that they admit on the basis of merit, taking into account appropriate factors which may well go beyond simply using predicted A-level scores. We have asked the Higher Education Funding Council to look at best practice and disseminate it throughout the sector so that all universities have admissions processes which are fair and transparent.

Higher Education (Drop-out Costs)

George Howarth: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what research his Department has commissioned into the relationship between student costs and drop out rates for each university and higher education institution.

Charles Clarke: Figures published in 2002 by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) show that the UK as a whole has one of the lowest non-completion rates among OECD countries.
	Up to date research, the UNITE/MORI "Student Living Report 2003", found that 96 per cent. of students consider that going to university is a worthwhile experience and that the major reason for drop out is dissatisfaction with the course rather than financial issues. 87 per cent. of students interviewed agreed that the money they were spending on higher education was a good investment in their future.
	These findings on drop out are backed up by research commissioned by the Department "Dropping Out: A Study of Early Leavers from Higher Education" by Peter Elias and Rhys Davies at the Institute of Employment Research at Warwick University, published January 2003 that shows that the most common cause of non-completion was poor choice of course. Financial problems and personal problems were also cited by respondents to the survey. However, a relatively low response rate to the survey underpinning the research implies the quantitative results are only indicative.
	The National Audit Office report "Improving Student Achievement in English Higher Education" published in January 2002 showed that students who drop out tend to have lower prior academic qualifications. Most of them cite personal reasons (feeling unprepared for higher education, changing personal circumstances or financial matters) or withdraw because of academic failure.

Higher Education (Operating Deficits)

Nick Gibb: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how many universities and colleges in the English and Welsh higher education sector have operating deficits; and if he will make a statement.

Charles Clarke: Information about higher education institutions in Wales is for the Welsh Assembly to provide. The Higher Education Funding Council for England published 'Outcomes of 2002 financial forecasts and annual operating statements' in January 2003. This report is based on information provided by higher education institutions in July 2002. The forecasts were based on assumptions reflecting the prevailing general economic climate and the funding announcements made at the time and so do not take account of the Spending Review settlement for 2003–04 to 2005–06. Projected levels of surplus are significantly affected by exceptional items, such as gains or losses on property transactions.
	The forecast income and expenditure position for the sector as a whole is set out in Table 1 of the report, which is shown.
	
		Table 1: Actual and forecast income and expenditure -- £ million
		
			  Actual 1999–2000 Actual 2000–01 Forecast 2001–02 Forecast 2002–03 Forecast 2003–04 Forecast 2004–05 Forecast 2005–06 
		
		
			 Total income 10,465 11,069 11,585 12,237 12,796 13,280 13,799 
			 % Increase — 5.8 5.5 5.6 4.6 3.8 3.9 
			 Total expenditure 10,370 11,100 11,598 12,250 12,754 13,213 13,711 
			 % increase — 7.0 5.9 5.6 4.1 3.6 3.8 
			 Surplus after — — — — — — — 
			 Depreciation of assets of valuation and tax 125 44 13 (10) 143 109 94 
			 Surplus as % of total income 1.19 0.40 0.10 (0.09) 1.10 0.81 0.67 
			 Historical cost surplus as % of total income 1.95 1.25 0.92 0.51 2.11 1.37 1.02 
			 Exceptional items — 77 26 3 101 41 6 
		
	
	The only year where there is a forecast deficit for the sector as a whole is 2002–03 when the deficit is estimated at £10 million or 0.9 per cent. of the total budget of over £12 billion.
	The number of universities and colleges forecasting deficits is shown in table 2 of the report.
	
		Table 2: Actual and forecast surpluses and deficits
		
			  Number of HEIs forecasting operating deficits Number of HEIs forecasting historical cost deficits 
		
		
			 2000–01 47 (35%) 35 (26%) 
			 2001–02 55 (41%) 35 (26%) 
			 2002–03 60 (45%) 35 (26%) 
			 2003–04 44 (33%) 24 (18%) 
			 2004–05 39 (29%) 21 (16%) 
			 1005–06 33 (25%) 22 (16%) 
		
	
	As a result of the latest Spending Review announcements, Government spending on higher education will rise by more than 6 per cent. a year above inflation over the next three years.

NUT Annual Conference

David Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills if he will arrange for a Minister from his Department to attend the National Union of Teachers' annual conference this Easter.

David Miliband: No Minister will attend the NUT's annual conference this year.

Research Authorities

Tim Boswell: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what plans he has to reflect greater selectivity in the research authorities of the higher education sector, with particular reference to those rating above 5.

Charles Clarke: In "The Future of Higher Education" we announced our intention to identify the very best of the Departments rated 5* in the last Research Assessment Exercise and give them an uplift in funding over the next three years in order to focus resources on the strongest performers. We are asking the Higher Education Funding Council for England to consider how best to implement this proposal.

St James School, Colindale

Andrew Dismore: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills when he expects to make a decision on the application by St. James School, Colindale for consent to build an all-weather pitch on its playing fields.

David Miliband: The Secretary of State expects to make a decision on this application within the next few days.

Student Drop-Outs

David Atkinson: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills if he will list those universities with over 20 per cent. of students expected to drop out of their courses without finishing their degrees, using the latest figures compiled by the Higher Education Funding Council; if he will estimate the cost to public funds for each student; what initiative he is taking to reduce drop outs; and if he will make a statement.

Charles Clarke: The latest information is shown in the table. The cost to the Exchequer of students who drop out from UK universities depends on factors such as the timing of drop outs within academic years, the level of public funding associated with individual courses, whether or not students transfer to other HE institutions and whether or not students return to HE at a later date. Figures for the cost are not compiled centrally.
	The UK has one of the best completion rates in the world. The latest Higher Education Funding Council for England (HEFCE) Performance Indicators (Pis) put the national rate of non-completion at 17 per cent. This rate has stayed broadly the same since 1991–92, a period of considerable expansion of student numbers. But there is room for improvement. That is why we have asked HEFCE to "bear down" on non-completion, in particular by identifying examples of good practice in student retention and disseminating them across the sector; by working more closely with those institutions whose performance indicator for non-completion fails to meet expectations; and by working with the Department in establishing a sector target for non-completion.
	
		HE Institutions in the UK with non-completion rates of more than 20 per cent. Full-time students starting first degree courses in 1999–2000
		
			  Non-completion rate 
			 Institution Projected(12) Benchmark(13) 
		
		
			  
			  
			 England — — 
			 Anglia Polytechnic University(12) 27 21 
			 Bolton Institute of HE(12) 30 25 
			 University of Central Lancashire(12) 33 26 
			 Coventry University 22 21 
			 Dartington College of Arts 24 17 
			 University of Derby 24 22 
			 University of East London(12) 33 26 
			 University of Greenwich 26 23 
			 University of Huddersfield(12) 25 20 
			 Kingston University 21 21 
			 Liverpool Hope University College 23 23 
			 Liverpool John Moores University(12) 22 19 
			 London Guildhall University(12) 30 25 
			 University of Loton(12) 26 21 
			 Middlesex University 22 23 
			 University College Northampton(12) 29 20 
			 University of North London(12) 45 27 
			 School of Oriental and African Studies(12) 29 17 
			 South Bank University 28 26 
			 Staffordshire University 23 20 
			 University of Sunderland(12) 28 21 
			 University of Teeside(12) 27 22 
			 Thames Valley University(12) 29 22 
			 Trinity College of Music(12) 39 17 
			 University of the West of England 21 19 
			 University of Westminster 23 23 
			 Scotland   
			 University of Abertay Dendee(12) 24 17 
			 Glasgow Caledonian University(12) 29 17 
			 University of Paisley(12) 31 17 
			 Wales   
			 University of Glamorgan 25 23 
			 University of Wales, Lampeter 26 21 
			 University of Wales College, Newport(12) 26 21 
			 North East Wales Institute 26 23 
			 Swansea Institute of Higher Education(12) 30 19 
		
	
	(12) The projected outcomes are calculated on the assumption that the progression paths of new entrants will be the same as those for students currently in the system. Those institutions whose projected value is significantly worse than their benchmark are marked with an asterix.
	The benchmark is an expected value which allows for the entry qualifications of the students and the subject mix of the institution.
	Source
	"Performance Indicators in Higher Education" published by HEFCE.

Top-up Fees (Brunel University)

Vincent Cable: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what representations he has received from Brunel University about the impact of top-up fees on the socio-economic background of applicants; and if he will make a statement.

Charles Clarke: We have received a number of representations from a variety of sources since the launch of the White Paper and expect to receive more during the period for comment.

University Entrants

Paul Farrelly: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how many UK students have entered universities in (a) England, (b) Wales, (c) Northern Ireland and (d) Scotland in each academic year since 1990.

Charles Clarke: The latest available figures are shown in the table. Figures for Scotland and Wales are the responsibility of the devolved Administrations of these countries.
	
		UK domiciled entrants to undergraduate courses(13)
		
			 Academicyear England(14) Wales(14) Scotland(15) Northern Ireland(14) 
		
		
			 1990–91 328,500 18,000 46,200 9,200 
			 1991–92 377,700 20,500 49,300 9,900 
			 1992–93 415,600 23,600 56,800 10,800 
			 1993–94 437,200 24,300 59,000 11,300 
			 1994–95 460,700 27,200 75,000 12,100 
			 1995–96 477,900 31,200 82,600 15,300 
			 1996–97 476,100 31,400 91,000 15,400 
			 1997–98 483,700 30,700 95,700 17,600 
			 1998–99 471,300 31,000 97,600 18,300 
			 1999–2000 485,000 32,200 98,700 18,900 
			 2000–01 490,500 34,300 98,800 20,600 
			 2001–02(16) 504,300 36,800 106,200 19,800 
		
	
	(13) Entrants to full-time and part-time courses at HE and FE institutions. Excludes students at the Open University.
	(14) Census count as at 31 December in years up to 1993–94, and as at 1 December in subsequent years.
	(15) Census count as at 31 December in years up to 1993–94, whole year session counts in subsequent years.
	(16) Provisional. Includes estimates for HE students in FE colleges.
	Note:
	Figures have been rounded to the nearest hundred.

Work Experience

Nick Gibb: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what his plans are for the provision of structured and accredited work experience schemes for 14 to 16 year olds.

David Miliband: As I said in my answer to the hon. Member on 10 February over 95 per cent. of pupils currently undertake work experience placements in their last years of compulsory schooling, and we want all pupils to benefit from high quality placements. A range of guidance and support is already provided by the Department, the Learning and Skills Council and the Qualifications and Curriculum Authority. This seeks to ensure that placements are safe, well structured, integrated into the curriculum and suited to the needs of the individual, with activities and outcomes captured within pupils' records of achievement.
	We also intend to make work-related learning a statutory requirement for all pupils at Key 4 from 2004–05. We have asked the QCA for further advice on work-related learning as part of their overall advice on Key Stage 4 curriculum change. While delivery will vary according to pupils' needs and circumstances, integrating work experience more closely into the curriculum will be one of the means by which this requirement may be fulfilled. In many cases the experience will be distinct and practical, providing opportunities for assignments and project work that will contribute directly to qualifications such as the new GCSEs in vocational subjects or NVQs.

FOREIGN AND COMMONWEALTH AFFAIRS

Gibraltar

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs which Government officials are responsible for liaison with officials from Gibraltar.

Denis MacShane: The Government is in regular contact with the Gibraltar Government on a broad range of issues. This involves contact between officials in a number of Whitehall departments and the Gibraltar Government.

British Council

David Laws: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what his estimate is of the cost to the British Council of funding arts events abroad in 2001 to support UK creative industries; and if he will make a statement.

Denis MacShane: The British Council expenditure on the arts and creative industries programme in Financial Year 2001–02 was £24.9 million, including £8.1 million of staff costs in the UK and overseas. This funding leveraged a further £27.2 million from partners, sponsors and other revenue sources.

British Council

David Laws: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs pursuant to the information given on page 91 of the FCO Departmental Report 2002, whether the event attended by Mr.Fidel Castro, including a performance by the Manic Street Preachers, was funded by his Department through the British Council; and if he will make a statement.

Denis MacShane: holding answer 26 February 2003
	The costs of the concert were borne by the band and their record company, with the venue, local staffing, logistics and security provided by the Cuban Ministry of Culture and the Cuban Institute of Music. The British Council's role was to facilitate contact between the band and the Cuban authorities.

Common Foreign and Security Policy

Michael Ancram: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what the Government's policy is with regard to recent proposals by the French and German governments that decisions over European Common Foreign and Security Policy be taken by qualified majority vote; what discussions he has had with the two governments concerning this matter; and if he will make a statement.

Jack Straw: holding answer 27 January 2003
	Her Majesty's Government will not come to final decisions on the matter until it has had, in due course, the opportunity to study the Reports of the Convention as a whole. The right hon. Gentleman will wish to note that in the Convention Working Group, my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Wales proposed the following: "While noting that there was no consensus yet on the further extension of QMV, the Group could agree that the future Treaty should include a provision, which would provide for the possibility of the European Council agreeing to extend (on the basis of unanimity) the use of QMV in CFSP.".

Convention on the Future of Europe

Austin Mitchell: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs pursuant to his Answer to the right hon. Member for Wells (Mr. Heathcoat-Amory) of 7 February 2003, Official Report, column 479, on the Convention on the Future of Europe, what plans he has to submit the draft constitutional treaty to Parliament before it is discussed at the inter-governmental conference; whether it is his policy that Parliament will have a chance to vote on the draft treaty (a) before and (b) after the inter-governmental conference; and whether the draft constitution will be put to a referendum of the British people.

Denis MacShane: The Praesidium's draft Constitutional Treaty is a public document which can be accessed through the Convention website at www.european-convention.eu.int. The UK Parliament is already a party to the discussions in the Convention, beingrepresented by four official members, one of whom is on the Convention's Praesidium. As with all previous EU treaties, a Constitutional Treaty would be submitted for scrutiny by Parliament before the UK would ratify it. The Government has no plans to hold a referendum on any new EU treaty.

Krishna Maharaj

Peter Bottomley: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs when he expects to decide on further official action and approaches to the United States authority seeking remedies, relief and an order for a new trial for Krishna Maharaj.

Mike O'Brien: Officials in London, and the Consulate-General in Atlanta remain in close and regular contact with Mr Maharaj's legal representatives, and continue to take an active interest in the on-going legal proceedings. It is for Mr Maharaj's lawyers to pursue the legal avenues open to him, including the possibility of a re-trial. We will, however, look to see what else HMG could properly do.

Kurdistan

Joan Ruddock: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what recent discussions he has had with the Kurdistan Regional Government regarding means to assist Kurdish citizens in the event of a military attack on Iraq.

Mike O'Brien: No decision has been taken to launch military action against Iraq. Ministers and officials regularly meet representatives of the northern Iraq Kurdish administrations, as well as other Iraqi oppositionists, to discuss a wide range of issues. Most recently, my right hon. Friend the Prime Minister met Massoud Barzani and Jalal Talabani, leaders of the Kurdistan Democratic Party and the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan respectively, in December 2002.

LORD CHANCELLOR

Travelling to the UK on False Documentation

Humfrey Malins: To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department how many persons during the last 12 months for which figures are available have been prosecuted for travelling to the UK on false documentation; how many were legally represented; how many raised the defence under section 31 of the Immigration and Asylum Act 1999 that they wished to claim asylum; how many were convicted; and how many were sentenced to imprisonment of (a) less than six months and (b) more than six months.

Beverley Hughes: holding answer 25 February 2003
	I have been asked to reply.
	The information required to answer this question is not collected and could only be obtained at disproportionate cost.

Children and Family Court Advisory andSupport Services

Simon Hughes: To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department what proportion of the set-up costs for CAFCASS was spent on the new IT system.

Rosie Winterton: In the year preceding CAFCASS's launch, a total of £10.2m was spent on set up costs of the new organisation; this included capital expenditure of £7.7m. Over £5m of this total, i.e. some 50% was spent on the IT service for the new organisation.

Children and Family Court Advisory andSupport Services

Simon Hughes: To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department how many of the records of children who are known to CAFCASS had been transferred onto the new IT system by the end of 2002; and how many will be transferred by the end of (a) 2003, (b) 2004 and (c) 2005.

Rosie Winterton: The Children and Family Court Advisory and Support Service (CAFCASS) is currently considering how to record cases in a standardised electronic format. Meanwhile the full case papers are held in the existing methods of storage.

Children and Family Court Advisory andSupport Services

Simon Hughes: To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department how much has been spent by CAFCASS on new accommodation since 1 April 2001; and what proportion of this came (a) from the CAFCASS annual budget and (b) from initial start-up costs.

Rosie Winterton: Since 1 April 2001 CAFCASS has been implementing a strategy to ensure its accommodation is suitable for its needs. This has involved disposing of some properties inherited from the predecessor organisations and acquiring new properties. Overall the number of properties has reduced from 184 to 146. Costs of £3.76 million in 2001–02 were met from set-up funding which was provided to CAFCASS for this and other purposes. Costs in 2002–03 are likely to be £1.34 million and have been met from their 2002–03 operating budget.

Children and Family Court Advisory andSupport Services

Simon Hughes: To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department how many CAFCASS offices comply with all health and safety legislation; and how many will comply by the end of (a) 2003, (b) 2004 and (c) 2005.

Rosie Winterton: The Children and Family Court Advisory and Support Service (CAFCASS) aims to complete, by the end of 2003–04, an internal safety audit for each office. This will give a clear indication of progress. In addition, a number of topic-specific national safety procedures have been developed, addressing a range of legislative requirements and duties, including emergency actions, induction training, first aid, workplace inspections, accident reporting, lone working and display screen use. CAFCASS had in any event adopted the inherited Health and Safety policies and procedures of its predecessor organisations.

Children and Family Court Advisory andSupport Services

Simon Hughes: To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department what the cost is of CAFCASS staff based in (a) headquarters and (b) regional offices in 2002–03; and what proportion this represents of the overall budget.

Rosie Winterton: CAFCASS salaried staff costs for 2002–03 are forecast to be £2.9 million for headquarters, 3.5 per cent. of the overall budget, and £46.4 million for staff in the regions, 55.9 per cent. of the overall budget. These figures (including London) include the costs of CAFCASS employed guardians, but not self-employed guardians or other agency or contract staff.

Domestic Violence

Margaret Moran: To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department what steps she is taking to ensure that judges and the judiciary receive training to recognise and deal with cases of domestic violence.

Rosie Winterton: My Department continues to work closely with the Judicial Studies Board to develop training for judges and magistrates that takes account of the growing body of knowledge about domestic violence.
	All newly appointed part time judges, and all judges who are authorised to hear family cases, are required to attend a residential "Induction Course" in the relevant jurisdiction. Thereafter, both full and part time judges attend residential continuation seminars every three years in each jurisdiction they exercise. The amount of training time provided on domestic violence in JSB courses and seminars is shown in the annexed table. Many judges also attend locally organised conferences.
	In addition all full and part time judges sitting in the Crown Court attend an annual one-day Circuit Seminar on sentencing issues, for which the theme last year was Domestic Violence. This provided, on average, up to five hours of additional training on this subject in 2000–01.
	Training of Magistrates is the statutory responsibility of individual Magistrates' Courts Committees. But the JSB assists by producing generic training materials, and is currently working on a training package specifically on domestic violence.
	I also launched a guide on 21 February to inform service providers of the current remedies available to victims of domestic violence in the civil and criminal courts. It is my hope that the magistrates and the professional judiciary will also find this a useful source of information.
	We will continue to identify further action in every area of our responsibilities, and in those areas of responsibility that we share with other Government Departments, to make sure that tackling domestic violence and protecting its victims (adults and children) are given the priority they deserve.

Refurbishment

Norman Baker: To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department whether a building research establishment environmental assessment method document has been prepared for the refurbishment of (a) GKN House, (b) Steel House and (c) Clive House.

Rosie Winterton: (a) There are no plans to undertake a BREEAM assessment on the partial refurbishment of GKN House. (b) An assessment has not yet been carried out for Steel House but it is a requirement of the contract, soon to be awarded, that such an assessment is undertaken. (c) A BREEAM method document has been prepared for Clive House.

TREASURY

Anti-poverty Targets

Neil Turner: To ask Mr. Chancellor of the Exchequer, If he will estimate the cost of meeting the anti-poverty targets of the millenium development goals.

John Healey: The UN estimates that global aid flows will need to be doubled in order to meet the Millenium Development Goals by 2015. This means that an extra $50 billion is needed per year.
	The UK is seeking to develop the proposal for an International Finance Facility in partnership with the international community. The facility would borrow on the international capital markets to raise the amount of development aid for the years to 2015 from $50 billion a year to $100 billion dollars per year.

Pension Credit

Helen Jones: To ask Mr. Chancellor of the Exchequer, how many pensioners in Warrington North will be eligible for the pension credit.

Dawn Primarolo: As at November 2002, over 2,700 pensioners in Warrington North were receiving the Minimum Income Guarantee. They and others besides will benefit from the Pension Credit. Nationally, the Department for Work and Pensions is aiming to ensure that at least three million pensioner households receive their entitlement by 2006.

National Insurance

Sydney Chapman: To ask Mr. Chancellor of the Exchequer, what his estimate is of the effect of the impending national insurance increases on UK competitiveness.

Dawn Primarolo: I refer the hon. Gentleman to my response in the Chamber earlier today to the hon. Member for East Worthing and Shoreham.

Bioethanol

David Kidney: To ask Mr. Chancellor of the Exchequer, If he will reduce the duty on bioethanol used as fuel for motor vehicles.

John Healey: In the Pre Budget Report, we announced a reduced rate of duty for bioethanol, to be set at 20 pence per litre less than the prevailing rate for ultra low sulphur petrol. The date of implementation of this new rate will be announced at the time of the Budget.

Debt

Phil Hope: To ask Mr. Chancellor of the Exchequer, what arrangements he is proposing to write off the debt of the world's poorest countries.

John Healey: I refer the hon. Gentleman to the answer the Chancellor gave the hon. Member for Gloucester earlier today.

EU Economic Policies

Alan Howarth: To ask Mr. Chancellor of the Exchequer, what his policy is on the European Union's co-ordinating the economic policies of the member states

Ruth Kelly: The Government has consistently made clear its support for a prudent interpretation of the Stability and Growth Pact, which takes into account the economic cycle, sustainability and the important role of public investment.
	The Government is committed to economic reform in Europe, building on the Lisbon agenda. The progress report on European economic reform, "Meeting the Challenge; Economic Reform in Europe", was published on 17 February 2003, and describes progress made in meeting the Lisbon objectives.

ACT Dividend Credit

Andrew Robathan: To ask Mr. Chancellor of the Exchequer, what estimate he has made of the amount of extra revenue he has received since 1997 from the abolition of ACT dividend credit.

Ruth Kelly: I take it that the hon. Gentleman is referring to tax credits paid on dividends received by investors.
	When we announced the changes to dividend tax credits in July 1997 we estimated that they would increase revenue by amounts of £2.3 billion in 1997–98, £3.95 billion in 1998–99, and around £51.5 billion each year thereafter.
	But it is misleading to look at these figures in isolation. The abolition of payable tax credits was part of a wider package of CT reform that reduced rates of corporation tax and encourages re-investment of profits for growth. These reforms will have partly offset the effects of changes to tax credits.
	There has been no estimate made of the Exchequer effects since those Budget forecasts.

Child Trust Fund

Stephen O'Brien: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will list each Government consultation that has included information on the Child Trust Fund.

Ruth Kelly: Proposals for the Child Trust Fund (CTF) were first published in April 2001 in the consultation document, Saving and Assets for All. A follow up consultation document, Delivering Saving and Assets, which asked specific questions about the delivery model for the CTF, was published in November 2001. The result of this consultation was published in the 2002 Pre-Budget Report. As part of the consultation launched on 5 February 2003 on the product specifications for the 'stakeholder' products recommended by the Sandier review, the Government is seeking views on whether explicitly linking the CTF to the other products in the Sandier suite would be helpful.

Gold Reserves

Teddy Taylor: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what assessment he has made of the outcome of the policy of instructing the Bank of England to sell gold reserves; and what percentage of total gold reserves have been sold.

Ruth Kelly: As recommended by the Public Accounts Committee, the Treasury undertook a review of the gold sales programme once it was completed. Copies of the Treasury's "Review of the Sale of Part of the UK Gold Reserves", issued in October 2002, have been placed in the House of Commons' Library. It is also available on the Treasury's website.
	As a result of the portfolio restructuring the Government has reduced the United Kingdom's gold holdings from the 715 tonnes (held in May 1999) to 320 tonnes at the end of the programme, a reduction of around 60 per cent. The United Kingdom now holds around 23 per cent of its net reserves in gold.

Government Assets

David Laws: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what his estimate is of the total (a) market value and (b) same use value of land and buildings owned by the UK Government; and if he will make a statement.

Paul Boateng: The National Asset Register (CM 5221) shows that, at March 2000, the value of land and buildings owned by central government departments and their sponsored bodies in the public sector was £160 billion. Land and buildings are valued in accordance with the relevant UK accounting standards. Further information is available in departmental resource accounts and the accounts of their sponsored bodies.

Government Finance

Gerald Howarth: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what his forecasts are for the Government's (a) budget deficit and (b) PSBR, (i) in absolute terms and (ii) as a proportion of GDP, for the next five financial years; whether these will be compliant with the terms and conditions of euro membership and the stability pact; and if he will make a statement.

Paul Boateng: Projections of public sector net borrowing as a proportion of GDP and in £ billion for the next five financial years are shown in the 2002 Pre-Budget Report, in Tables B2 and B5 respectively. The public sector net cash requirement, formerly known as the public sector borrowing requirement (PSBR), is shown in Table B22 of the 2002 Pre-BudgetReport for 2001–02 and 2002–03.
	Table B2 of the 2002 Pre-Budget Report also shows the Treaty measures of deficit and debt used in the excessive deficits procedure. The reference levels of 3 per cent. of GDP for the deficit and 60 per. cent of GDP for gross debt are comfortably achieved throughout the period. The projections are consistent with the Government's prudent interpretation of the Stability and Growth Pact, which takes into account the economic cycle, sustainability and the important role of public investment (as specified in Article 104 of the EC Treaty).

Iraqi Residents (UK)

Robert Walter: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what the latest estimate is of the number of Iraqi nationals resident in the United Kingdom.

Ruth Kelly: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the National Statistician. I have asked him to reply.
	Letter from L. Cook to Mr. R. Walter, dated 27 February 2003
	As National Statistician, I have been asked to reply to your Parliamentary Question about the number of Iraqi nationals resident in the United Kingdom. (99689)
	The latest available estimate of the number of Iraqi nationals resident in the United Kingdom is 21,000. This estimate is obtained from averaging the results from the Labour Force Survey over the twelve month period ending November 2002 and is subject to sampling error.

Ministerial Travel

Simon Burns: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many times since 2001 he has taken flights within his departmental duties in the UK; how many of these were (a) charter flights, (b) first or club class and (c) by helicopter; and who accompanied him on each trip.

Ruth Kelly: The Chancellor of the Exchequer has taken four flights, including two return flights, within the UK on departmental business since 2001. One of these flights was in club class. He has taken no charter or helicopter flights.
	On one occasion he was accompanied by two special advisers, a press officer and a private secretary; on another by a special adviser, a press officer, a private secretary and an official; on one occasion by a special adviser, a press officer and two private secretaries; and on another occasion by a special adviser and two private secretaries. All travel was undertaken in accordance with the rules set out in the Ministerial Code and Travel by Ministers, copies of which are available in the Library.

Parliamentary Questions

Martyn Jones: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer when he will answer Written Question 92347 tabled for answer on the named day of 28 January.

Ruth Kelly: My Private Secretary provided this information by letter on 17 February in response to an enquiry from the hon. Gentleman. I am placing a copy of the letter in the Library of the House.

NORTHERN IRELAND

Amnesic Shellfish Poisoning

Iris Robinson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what scientific evidence the UK Government has collated to suggest that amnesic shellfish poisoning in scallops represents a threat to human health.

Hazel Blears: There have been no recorded instances of amnesic shellfish poisoning (ASP) in humans in the United Kingdom due to the consumption of scallops. However, ASP is a recognised neurotoxin, which has caused severe illness and even death in other countries through consumption of shellfish and is therefore a serious threat to human health.

Amnesic Shellfish Poisoning

Iris Robinson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland when the European Commission intends to respond to the appeal from the Food Standards Agency for a review of the current internationally accepted action level of 20 mg/kg in scallops; and what scientific evidence the Commission has collated to suggest that amnesic shellfish poisoning represents a threat to human health.

Hazel Blears: The Food Standards Agency wrote to the European Commission on the question of the action level, seeking their views on how further research may be taken forward. The Commission has acknowledged receipt of a project proposal for the assessment of scallop portion size as a contribution to the assessment of the risk to consumer health. This proposal will be evaluated and, if considered valid, submitted to the Commission's Scientific Committee for Scrutiny.
	The current European Union controls are based on evidence drawn from an incident in Canada which resulted in cases of severe illness and several deaths. Details of this or any ongoing research can be obtained from the Commission's Directorate General SANCO.

Police Service of Northern Ireland

Andrew MacKinlay: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what procedures, tests, and exercises constitute the process by which PSNI officers reclassify in relation to use of firearms; and if he will make a statement.

Jane Kennedy: The training comprises of an introductory Health and Safety input, a refresher handling class, a live fire qualification shoot and an interactive lesson on Human Rights and Police Use of Firearms.

Scallop Fishery

Iris Robinson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland for what reason the whole Irish Sea scallop fishery has been closed.

Hazel Blears: I am advised by the Food Standards Agency, which has responsibility for monitoring shellfisheries for the presence of algal biotoxins as required under EC Directive 91/492, that closures of scallop fisheries are based on sample test results above the statutory limit.

PRIME MINISTER

Director of Communications

Don Foster: To ask the Prime Minister 
	(1)  what rules govern speeches made to external organisations by his Director of Communications; and if he will make a statement;
	(2)  if he will place in the Library a copy of the speech made to the Freight Transport Association by his Director of Communications on 18 February.

Tony Blair: Speeches made by special advisers in an official capacity are governed by the requirements of the Model Contract for Special Advisers. In line with the terms of his contract, my Director of Communications occasionally carries out speaking engagements. His speech to the Freight Transport Asociation was one of a number he is doing in a personal capacity to raise funds for charity. He spoke about his experience in the media and in politics, and then did a Q&A session. There is no record of his remarks.

Iraq

Graham Allen: To ask the Prime Minister 
	(1)  what plans Her Majesty's Government has to present the government of Iraq with a formal written ultimatum before it enters a state of armed conflict with that Government;
	(2)  what the maximum length of time is in which Iraq is required to comply with the terms of UN Security Council Resolution 1441; and if he will make a statement;
	(3)  if he will make it his policy to publish, in advance of entering a state of armed conflict with Iraq, a statement indicating why he considers that all peaceful means of settling the disputes between the United Kingdom and Iraq have been exhausted.

Tony Blair: I refer the hon. Member to the statement I gave in the House on Tuesday 25 February 2003.

Lord Lieutenant for Cambridgeshire

James Paice: To ask the Prime Minister when he expects the announcement of the new Lord Lieutenant for Cambridgeshire to be made.

Tony Blair: The former Lord-Lieutenant for Cambridgeshire, James Crowden, retired in November last year. The process of identifying a successor is well in hand and we hope to announce an appointment shortly.

CABINET OFFICE

Capita

Paul Burstow: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office pursuant to his answer of 13 January 2003, Official Report, columns 367–368W, on Capita, if he will give the (a) start and finish date, (b) value, (c) evaluation mechanism for successful delivery and (d) penalty charges for failure to deliver for each contract; whether penalty charges have been incurred; what the service level agreements were; what the contract numbers were; and if he will make a statement.

Douglas Alexander: The information requested is as follows:
	Contract for Fast Stream Recruitment Support
	(a) Started 1 April 2001, ends 30 September 2003
	(b) The contract is part fixed cost and part variable cost. The fixed cost is £1,224,000 and the variable cost to date is £1,980,000
	(c) Successful delivery is achieved through careful contract management, including regular monitoring.
	(d) The contract contains a default procedure that has not been used. The contract number is F060.
	Contract for Provision of Civil Service and Judicial Pensioner Payroll and Associated Services
	(a) Started 1 October 2002, the contract is for 5.5 years extendable up to 10.5 years.
	(b) The current value is some £3.6 million per annum, however the contract price is subject to annual indexation and changes in live and preserved caseloads—either up or down.
	(c) Successful delivery is achieved through careful contract management, including regular monitoring.
	(d) The contract provides for a reduction in the contract price if performance standards are not achieved. The contract does not have a number.
	Contract for Recruitment of Assistant Parliamentary Counsel
	(a) Started 4 October 2001, ended 11 November 2002
	(b) £19,000
	(c) Successful delivery was achieved through contract management, including regular monitoring.
	(d) The contract provided for termination in the event of a material breach which was not remedied. The contract did not have a number.
	I have put a copy of the service levels for each contract in the Library.
	All costs exclude VAT.

Civil Defence

Gregory Barker: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office pursuant to his answer of 10 February 2003, Official Report, column 495W, what further steps have been taken by his Department since 11 September 2001 to ensure that local authorities in England and Wales work in conjunction with the (a) St John's Ambulance and (b) other voluntary organisations to update local civil defence plans and increase civil defence (i) planning and (ii) readiness in the event of an NBC terrorist attack in (A) London, (B) South East, (C) England and (D) UK; and when the most recent guidance was given.

Douglas Alexander: I refer the hon. Member to the reply I gave to him on 10 February 2003, Official Report, column 495W.

Mr. Peter Gershon

Nick Gibb: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office when Sir Andrew Turnbull will reply to the letter of 22 January 2003 from the hon. Member for Bognor Regis and Littlehampton regarding the conduct of Mr. Peter Gershon CBE.

Douglas Alexander: Sir Andrew Turnbull replied to the hon. Member on 26 February 2003.

Written Questions

Paul Burstow: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office how many named day written questions were tabled to the Department between 15 October 2002 and 24 February 2003; how many that received a holding answer were given a substantive answer (a) within three days, (b) within seven days, (c) within 14 days, (d) within 28 days and (e) over 28 days later; and what procedures the Department has in place to monitor performance on answering (i) Parliamentary Questions and (ii) ministerial letters.

Douglas Alexander: Seventy five Named Day questions were tabled to the Cabinet Office between 15 October and 24 February, of these nine had holding replies. All were answered within three parliamentary sitting days.
	Cabinet Office parliamentary questions are recorded on a parliamentary database, and progress of all parliamentary questions are monitored closely.
	As far as ministerial correspondence is concerned, the Cabinet Office, on an annual basis, publishes a report to Parliament on performance of departments in replying to Ministerial correspondence. The Report for 2001 was published on Friday 24 May 2002, column 674W. The Report for 2002 will be published in due course.

HEALTH

Age-related Macular Degeneration

Tim Loughton: To ask the Secretary of State for Health 
	(1)  what action his Department will undertake to ensure that primary care trusts fund the treatment of patients suffering from predominantly classic CNV associated with age-related macular degeneration (AMD) within the context of the clinical studies recommended in the Final Appraisal Determination of photodynamic therapy for AMD issued by NICE;
	(2)  when his Department returned photodynamic therapy for age-related macular degeneration to NICE; and when final guidance is expected;
	(3)  what his Department's estimate is of the number of patients who, according to the product licence, should have been eligible for treatment for AMD during the clinical studies.

David Lammy: We have asked the National Institute for Clinical Excellence (NICE) to carry out an appraisal of photodynamic therapy (PDT) as a treatment for age-related macular degeneration. It has not yet published any guidance to the National Health Service on this topic. NICE prepared its Final Appraisal Determination on Photodynamic Therapy and circulated it to consultees on 16 January. We understand this document has been appealed against. NICE will now consider any appeals before publishing its final guidance.
	Once guidance has been published, NHS bodies are obliged to make the ncessary funding available so that patients can receive treatments recommended by NICE, if recommended by the clinician.
	A recent study sponsored by the Macular Disease Society estimated that there were currently 182,000 suffering from age-related macular degeneration with a best eye visual acuity below that judged appropriate for certification as blind or partially sighted. The study forecast that this number would increase to 194,000 by 2008. We are unable to estimate exactly how many patients may benefit from photodynamic therapy until NICE has completed its appraisal of the therapy.

Agency Nurses

Anne McIntosh: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what estimate he has made of the cost of agency and bank nurses in (a) York and (b) North Yorkshire; and what assessment he has made of the impact of these costs on the respective primary care trusts.

Jacqui Smith: Figures for the costs of agency and bank nurses are not available. The table sets out the costs of all agency staff and other staff not directly employed by individual health authorities, national health service trust and primary care trusts—including agency nurses. Figures for the cost of bank nurses are included in the cost NHS nursing, midwifery and health visiting staff.
	
		Analysis of expenditure on non-NHS nursing, midwifery and health visiting staff, within the North Yorkshire Health Authority Boundary: 2001–02
		
			 Organisation name Expenditure on non-NHS nursing, midwifery and health visiting staff (£) 
		
		
			 North Yorkshire Health Authority 0 
			 Selby and York Primary Care Trust 83,388 
			 Northallerton Health Services NHS Trust 133,482 
			 York Health Services NHS Trust 766,850 
			 Scarborough and North East Yorkshire NHS Trust 201,422 
			 Harrogate Health Care NHS Trust 500,903 
			 Tees East and North Yorkshire Ambulance Services NHS Trust 0 
		
	
	Sources:
	1. Annual financial returns of health authorities.
	2. Annual financial returns of NHS trusts.
	3. Annual financial returns of primary care trusts.
	Source of information:
	Department of Health

Cancer Treatment

Ashok Kumar: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many teenage cancer patients since 1997 spent the majority of their cancer treatment in (a) adult and (b) children's wards in (i) England and (ii) the North East of England; and if he will make a statement.

Hazel Blears: No statistics are available centrally which allow distinction between adult and children's wards.

Cancer Treatment

Ashok Kumar: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will list the locations of teenage-specific cancer wards (a) in 1995, (b) in 2003 and (c) that are planned to be completed by 2010; and if he will make a statement.

Hazel Blears: We do not routinely hold details of all the teenage cancer wards provided in the National Health Service in 1995 nor those that are provided at the present time. However, we are aware of eight units currently dedicated to teenage cancer patients in the following NHS trusts:
	Middlesex Hospital, University College Hospitals NHS Trust, London;
	University College Hospital, University College Hospitals NHS Trust, London;
	Queen Elizabeth Hospital, University Hospital Birmingham NHS Trust;
	Christie Hospital NHS Trust, Manchester;
	Weston Park Hospital, Sheffield Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust;
	St James's University Hospital, Leeds Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust;
	Royal Victoria Infirmary, Newcastle upon Tyne Hospitals NHS Trust;
	Alder Hey Hospital, Royal Liverpool Children's NHS Trust
	It is for primary care trusts to decide exactly which health services their local population need now and in the future. We have asked the National Institute for Clinical Excellence to develop guidance on children's and adolescent cancers. This will help primary care trusts in the planning and delivery of future teenage cancer services.

Cancer Treatment

Nigel Evans: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will make a statement on the effectiveness and provision of cancer wards for teenagers in England.

Hazel Blears: The particular needs of adolescents in the health service are being considered as part of the national service framework for children, young people and maternity services. In addition, we have asked the National Institute of Clinical Excellence to develop guidance on children's and adolescent cancers. This guidance will take account of the national service framework and will help primary care trusts (who have responsibility for assessing the health service needs of the local population) determine the most effective way to deliver services that meet the particular needs of this group of cancer patients.

Cancer Treatment

Nigel Evans: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many beds have been available in specialist teenage cancer wards in England each year since 1997.

Hazel Blears: Information on bed numbers is not collected centrally at the level of detail requested.

Care Commissioning

Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what regulations govern local authority care commissioning; and what measures are in place to ensure transparency.

Jacqui Smith: holding answer 24 February 2003
	Councils should base their commissioning decisions on the principles of Best Value. They should focus on what will deliver the optimum outcome for service users. Whether councils' commissioning arrangements are fair and open is the subject of Best Value service reviews and reviews by the Audit Commission and the Social Services Inspectorate. These judgements are then published in reports.
	We expect local social services and health authorities to adopt the Building Capacity and Partnership in Care Agreement. We published this in October 2001 with the endorsement of local health and social care commissioners and providers. This document provides clear guidance on how to bring about improvements in the planning and commissioning of services in ways that brings confidence and stability to the whole system.

Care Standards Act

Tim Loughton: To ask the Secretary of State for Health when he will make a statement on proposed changes to the Care Standards Act 2000 regulation following the consultation at the end of last year.

Jacqui Smith: The consultation document issued on 16 August 2002 set out proposals to change certain national minimum standards for care homes for older people and care homes for younger adults (18–65) which relate to the physical environment. The consultation did not propose making any changes to the Care Homes Regulations 2001 issued under the Care Standards Act.
	The consultation exercise ended on 8 November 2002 and the revised national minimum standards were published on 18 February 2003.

Care Standards Act

Tim Loughton: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what plans he has to relax the regulations relating to communal space in care homes as a result of his consultation exercise on the Care Standards Act 2000.

Jacqui Smith: The consultation document issued on 16 August 2002 set out proposals to change certain national minimum standards for care homes for older people and care homes for younger adults (18–65) which relate to the physical environment. The consultation did not propose making any changes to the Care Homes Regulations 2001 issued under the Care Standards Act.
	The consultation exercise ended on 8 November 2002. The revised standards, published on 18 February 2003, include the standards relating to communal space.

Child Protection

Tim Loughton: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what communications to GPs regarding procedures for dealing with children suspected of suffering harm at the hands of their carers have been issued by his Department since 25 February 2000.

Jacqui Smith: There were no communications directly to general practitioners regarding procedures for dealing with children suspected of suffering harm at the hands of their carers in this period.
	I refer the hon. Member to the reply I gave him on Wednesday 12 February, Official Report, columns 810–11W.

Clinical Consent

Peter Duncan: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will make a statement on his policy regarding consent for (a) clinical experimentation, (b) research and (c) trials on babies born in the NHS with life-threatening conditions.

Hazel Blears: holding answer 24 February 2003
	The principles of consent remain broadly the same in all these settings. These are set out in the Department of Health's guidance published in March 2001 "A Reference Guide to Consent for Examination or Treatment" which explains the current English law on consent to treatment.

Correspondence

Bob Spink: To ask the Secretary of State for Health when he will reply to the letter of 29th November from Mrs.A C Phillips of Benfleet, a constituent.

Jacqui Smith: holding answer 3 February 2003
	A reply was sent to the hon. Member on 25 February 2003.

Correspondence

Andrew Turner: To ask the Secretary of State for Health when he will substantively reply to the letter of the hon. Member for the Isle of Wight dated 8 October 2002, ref. PO 1017307, concerning Mr.Wardrop.

David Lammy: A reply was sent to the hon. Member on 18 February 2003.

Departmental Land (Ashford)

Matthew Green: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what land has been sold by his Department in the Ashford area in the last five years.

Hazel Blears: One site in Ashford, Kent has been sold by the Department over the last five years; that of Pinewood Nursing Home in 1997.

Departmental Staff

Gordon Prentice: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many people were employed in the departmental filestores in each year since 1997; how many have been transferred to the private sector; and if he will make a statement.

David Lammy: The Department of Health filestore services have been contracted out since April 1996. Since that date the contractors have employed staff in the following numbers:
	
		
			 1 April to 31 March Number employed(whole time equivalent) 
		
		
			 1996–97 5.5 
			 1997–98 4.5 
			 1998–99 4.5 
			 1999–2000 5.5 
			 2000–01 5.5 
			 2001–02 6.5 
			 2002–03 5.5 
		
	
	These numbers include a manager on-site two to three days a week, but do not include casual staff recruited to help out with occasional peaks of work.
	No records management or filestore staff have been transferred to the private sector since 1996.

Departmental Website

Paul Burstow: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the total expenditure on the Department of Health website was in each of the last five years.

David Lammy: The cost of the Department's website from 1998–99 to 2002–03 is shown in the table.
	
		
			 Financial Year Hosting and maintenance (£000) Website development (£000) Estimated staff costs(18) (£000) Total costs (£000) 
		
		
			 1998–99 20.9 20 178.9 219.8 
			 1999–00 54.3 30 229.4 313.7 
			 2000–01 49.3 130.7 277.1 457.1 
			 2001–02 73.32 (17)245.9 407.6 726.8 
			 2002–03 (to 01/02/03) (17)103.36 46 426.2 575.5 
		
	
	Notes:
	(17) This includes £16,840 in migration and set-up costs incurred on switching Internet Service Providers in June 2002.
	(18) Based on agreed civil service staff costs (including salaries, common services, etc.)
	The website was set up in 1996 and has grown from 100 pages to over 80,000 pages since then. The number of databases made available online has increased from one at thebeginning of 1998 to 60 in 2002.
	In 2000, the Department embarked on a major redevelopment of the website in response to user feedback, the introduction of the Guidelines for UK government websites and an increase in use of the Internet as a vehicle for departmental publications. This was completed by the end of March 2002.
	The website regularly receives in the region of five million hits per month and is consistently placed in the top six most-visited Government websites.

Dietary Advice

Ian Gibson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what progress the Government is making in increasing the average daily consumption of fruit and vegetables from three to five portions a day.

Hazel Blears: National trends in fruit and vegetable consumption, since the beginning of the Five-a-Day programme in 2001, cannot as yet be fully ascertained, due to the considerable time it takes to undertake dietary surveys and their analyses. However, monitoring systems are in place. At a national level, trends in consumption will be assessed through the annual Health Survey for England, through which data on fruit and vegetables was collected for the first time in 2001.
	At a local level, evaluation of five local Five-a-Day pilot initiatives—one-year interventions targeting one million people between 2000 and 2001—demonstrated that they have produced important changes in people's knowledge, access and intake of fruit and vegetables. Overall, the intervention was found to have had a positive effect in people with the lowest intakes. Those who ate less than five a day at baseline increased their intakes by one portion over the course of the study. Sixty six new local five-a-day initiatives, funded by the New Opportunities Fund, will begin this year. A tool has been developed to ensure effective evaluation of the local Five-a-Day initiatives.
	Following successful piloting, the National School Fruit Scheme is now being extended throughout England on a region by region basis. The Scheme currently reaches 425,000 children in 3,500 schools across the whole of the West Midlands and London. A tool for assessing the impact of the National School Fruit Scheme on children's diets is currently being developed.

Domestic Violence

Sandra Gidley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what research her Department has carried out regarding the link between child physical abuse and domestic violence.

Jacqui Smith: The Department of Health's policy research programme is currently funding a research project which focuses on existing child protection practices and procedures and explores their ability to respond to children who have experienced domestic violence, or drug or alcohol misuse within their families.
	In addition, Government funding has, over the last few years, been used to support the following two studies, which are now complete: A health needs and health-care assessment of a population of children resident in refuges for women victims of domestic violence (Dr Elspeth Webb, 2000), a project which focussed on the children of women who were victims of domestic violence, within the refuge setting; and Children's Needs—Parenting Capacity, the impact of parental mental illness, problem alcohol and drug use, and domestic violence on children's development (H Cleaver, I Unell and J Aldgate, 1999), a study which examined how factors such as domestic violence, alcohol and drug misuse and mental illness, may impact on children and may affect a parent's capacity to respond to their child's needs.

Drug Appraisals (NICE)

Paul Burstow: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will set out the way in which (a) NCCHTA, (b) TAG, (c) TAR, (d) universities, (e) his Department, (f) NICE and (g) the joint working group work together to decide which drugs NICE should appraise; and if he will make a statement.

Hazel Blears: A paper describing new arrangements for selecting topics for referral to the National Institute for Clinical Excellence (NICE), including new pharmaceuticals, was sent to interested parties at the end of last year. A copy has been placed in the Library.

Drug Dependency (Treatment)

Helen Clark: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what targets he has set for improving the waiting times for treatment for opiate dependency (a) in prison and (b) in the community.

Hazel Blears: Drug treatment services in prisons are the responsibility of my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for the Home Department. I understand that the Prison Service has not set a specific target for improving the waiting times for treatment for opiate dependency in prison. All prisoners referred to the counselling, assessment, referral, advice and throughcare service should receive an initial assessment within a target of five days from the point of referral.
	In December 2001, the National Treatment Agency for Substance Misuse (NTA) developed a programme to tackle the growing problem of waiting times for drug treatment in the community. As part of this process, the NTA set targets on the maximum acceptable waiting times for treatment. The targets are defined by treatment modality, not by the patient's drug of dependence. Opiate dependent patients may be receiving treatment through any of the modalities shown in the table, according to their individual clinical need.
	
		Weeks
		
			  2002–03 2003–04 
		
		
			 In patient detoxification 4 2 
			 Specialist prescribing 6 3 
			 GP prescribing 4 2 
			 Structured counselling 4 2 
			 Day Care 4 3 
			 Residential rehab 4 3

DXA Scans

David Davis: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many DXA scans were completed in each hospital trust in 2002.

Jacqui Smith: Information on the number of dual energy X-Ray absorptiometry scans is not collected centrally.

Firefighters' Dispute

Edward Davey: To ask the Secretary of State for Health whether costs were incurred by his Department as a result of the fire strikes.

David Lammy: Some minimal costs were incurred. These were contained within the Department's normal budgets which allow for contingencies of this nature.

Health Care (East Riding)

David Davis: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many nurses work in hospitals in the East Riding of Yorkshire; and how many of them are employed from an agency.

Jacqui Smith: On 12 February 2003, the following number of nurses were employed by Hull and East Yorkshire Hospitals NHS Trust.
	
		
			 Nurses Headcount Whole time equivalent 
		
		
			 Qualified 2,230 1,927.8 
			 Unqualified 894 737.9 
		
	
	There is no record of the number of agency staff employed.
	Source of information:Hull and East Yorkshire NHS Trust

Heart Choice Scheme

Liam Fox: To ask the Secretary of State for Health whether it is a requirement for NHS hospitals to employ an independent patient care adviser to advise patients on the Heart Choice Scheme.

Hazel Blears: All trusts engaging in cardiac surgery and cardiac tertiary centres are now required under the patient choice initiative to employ a patient care adviser, who is accountable at the local level to the head of the parent trust's patient advice and liaison service.

HIV/AIDS

David Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the HIV/AIDS infection rate is in the United Kingdom.

Hazel Blears: The HIV/AIDS infection rate for adults aged between 15 and 49 years and living in the United Kingdom in 2001 is estimated to be 0.13 per cent.
	Source:Public Health Laboratory Service

Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority

Bob Spink: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what information he has received on the reasons of the resignation of the former Chief Executive of the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority.

Hazel Blears: In November 2002 Dr. Maureen Dalziel's appointment as Chief Executive of the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority was terminated, following a vote of no confidence by the members of the authority. This was entirely a decision for the members of the authority. However the Chair, Ms Suzi Leather, has confirmed there was no question of any impropriety nor was Dr. Dalziel's departure connected with any incident at a licensed treatment centre.

IT Contracts

Jonathan Sayeed: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will list IT contracts in his Department above £50 million in each of the last 10 years; what the inception date for each system was; when it became fully functional; when it became fully debugged; and what the cost of over-runs has been.

Hazel Blears: The only information technology contracts let by the Department of Health in the last 10 years in excess of £50 million are confined to centrally funded projects for the national health service.
	The Department does not retain centrally, detailed records of when NHS systems became fully debugged and the cost of any over-runs. This information could be provided only at disproportionate cost.
	Information on the IT contracts for 1993–2002 is shown in the table.
	
		£ million
		
			  Contract Costs Inception date Fully functional 
		
		
			 1993–94 — — — — 
			 1995 NHSNet central framework contract with BT and Cable and Wireless 129.6 1995 7–10 year contract. 1996 for BT 1997 for Cable and Wireless 
			 1996–99 — — — — 
			 2000 Clinical Messaging 50.0 2000 7 year contract. Gradual rollout from 2000 
			 2001 Microsoft software enterprise agreement 138.6 2001 3 year contract. This is a software purchase enabling contract 
			  Electronic Staff Record 325 2001 10 year contract. Gradual rollout from 2001 
			 2002 NHSNet purchase of additional bandwidth 96.5 2002 5 year contract. Gradual rollout from 2002 
			  Email and directory services 326.2 2002 10 year contract. Scheduled for March 2003

IVF Treatment

Bob Spink: To ask the Secretary of State for Health 
	(1)  how many licensed clinics offer single ovum IVF; and how many couples have been offered the option of this procedure;
	(2)  what the take-home-baby rate has been for IVF in unstimulated cycles (single ovum IVF).

Hazel Blears: The Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority (HFEA) does not record centres routinely offering treatment involving unstimulated cycles. For this reason it is unable to provide information on the exact number of centres that have provided this service. However, if a patient requests a natural cycle for medical or other reasons, the HFEA has advised that the clinic would consider providing this treatment.
	Information on total number of live births resulting from an unstimulated in vitro fertilisation treatment cycle is shown in the table.
	
		Natural IVF Cycles—fresh, unstimulated cycles using the patient's own oocytes(19),(20)
		
			 Time period Cycles Live births Birth rate percentage 
		
		
			 1 August to 31 December 1991 358 23 6.4 
			 1 January to 31 December 1992 823 52 6.3 
			 1 January to 31 December 1993 827 37 4.5 
			 1 January to 31 December 1994 628 16 2.5 
			 1 January to 31 December 1995 387 7 1.8 
			 1 January to 31 December 1996 196 4 2.0 
			 1 January to 31 December 1997 91 2 2.2 
			 1 January to 31 December 1998 94 4 4.3 
			 1 January to 31 March 1999(21) 28 — — 
			 Erroneous cycle dates(22) 4 — — 
			 
			 Total 3,436 145 4.2 
		
	
	(19) Data as recorded on the HFEA register.
	(20) As cycles are unstimulated (natural), single embryo transfers are routine. Where two oocytes are produced and both fertilise, two embryos could be replaced.
	(21) January to March 1999 is the most recent period for which figures are available.
	(22) Four cycles where year not correctly recorded.
	Source
	Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority

Lieutenant Commander R.W.J. Cansdell

Andrew Turner: To ask the Secretary of State for Health whether he will reply substantively to the letter of the hon. Member for Isle of Wight (Mr. Turner) dated 21 November, acknowledged on 25 November, ref P01020175, concerning Lieutenant Commander R. W. J. Cansdell.

Jacqui Smith: A reply was sent to the hon. Member on 24 February.

Maternity Patients (Drug Misuse)

Ashok Kumar: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many incidences of drug misuse by maternity patients there have been in England since 1997; and if he will make a statement.

Hazel Blears: The information requested is not available centrally. Information on numbers entering drug treatment services is available, via the national drug treatment monitoring system. This provides a breakdown by gender, but does not identify maternity patients as a separate group. Information on the number of women entering drug treatment services can be found from the statistical bulletin "Statistics from the Regional Drug Misuse Databases on drug misusers in treatment in England, 2000/01", published in December 2001 at http://www.doh.gov.uk/pubNc/sb0133.htm.
	Hospital Episode Statistics (HES) provide information about maternity in national health service hospitals. No data is collected relating to the provision of ante natal services.
	Maternity data is available at http://www.doh.gov.uk/public/sbQ211.htm.

Maternity Patients (Drug Misuse)

Ashok Kumar: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what measures are in place to help pregnant women who are addicted to drugs; and if he will make a statement.

Hazel Blears: Pregnant women are considered a priority group and are therefore fast tracked into treatment.
	Midwives provide the majority of care for pregnant mothers as well as advice and support on healthy lifestyles including substance misuse.
	If a woman, as part of her ante natal care, is assessed as requiring treatment for drug misuse she will be referred to appropriate drug treatment services.
	Obstetric and substance misuse services exist throughout the country. The Department of Health's "Drug Misuse and Dependence—Guidelines on Clinical Management" (Clinical Guidelines) recommends the following:
	"Different approaches have been tried to deliver care to pregnant drug misusers, such as specialist midwives, or drug dependence staff attached to the antenatal clinic. Each method should try to involve the primary health care team, particularly if prescribing substitute medication. The type of service in each area will depend on local circumstances, the number of pregnant drug misusers presenting for care, expertise of the obstetric and primary care services, and availability of specialist or shared-care support."
	Further information is available at http://www.doh. gov.uk/drugs/pdfs/dmfull.pdf.

Medicines

Ian Gibson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health 
	(1)  what steps he is taking to ensure that claims for the benefits of medicines advertised to health professionals are investigated;
	(2)  if he will make a statement on the assessment by the Medicines Control Agency of the advertising for the oral contraceptive Yasmin;
	(3)  what assessment he has made of the benefits of Yasmin in relation to other oral contraceptives.

Hazel Blears: In April 2002, at the time of launch of Yasmin, a combined oral contraceptive authorised in the European Mutual Recognition procedure in June 2000, the Medicines Control Agency (MCA) identified advertising for the product through its routine monitoring of published advertising materials. The company—Schering Health Care Limited—was asked to provide the references quoted in the advertising material. At this stage, the evidence in the references was not examined as closely as it would have been, and subsequently was, in the event of a complaint from a health care professional from the perspective of the clinical usage of the product.
	Following specific complaints from health professionals in August and September 2002, the MCA conducted an assessment of the claims made in advertising for Yasmin and concluded that the quality and extent of the evidence provided was not sufficiently robust to support the claims made and that the Yasmin advertising was in fact misleading. The MCA requested that the company, Schering Health Care Limited, withdraw the material and it did so in October 2002.
	The company was subsequently required to submit all its advertising for Yasmin to the MCA for review prior to publication. The MCA has also required Schering Health Care Limited to issue a corrective statement concerning advertising for Yasmin. This will be sent to health professionals who received previous advertising material from 21 February 2003 and also published in all medical journals where previous advertisements had appeared.
	The Agency makes an assessment of the safety, quality and efficacy of applications for a marketing authorisation. The data assessed in the Yasmin application included efficacy studies versus other licensed oral contraceptives as comparators. However, the comparative benefits of a particular product in relation to other products are not relevant to the Licensing Authority decision under the terms of the Medicines Act 1968, so long as there is acceptable evidence of efficacy.
	The control of medicines advertising in the United Kingdom is based on a long established system of self-regulation, underpinned by statutory powers administered by the MCA under the Medicines (Advertising) Regulations 1994 and the Medicines (Monitoring of Advertising) Regulations 1994. The MCA undertakes a range of duties, set out in a published guidance note, to ensure that claims for the benefits of medicines in advertising comply with the statutory requirements. These include preventing of advertising prior to publication in certain circumstances, monitoring of medicines advertising in medical and other journals and investigation of complaints about advertising from any source, including health professionals and the public.

National Institute for Mental Health

Tim Loughton: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many (a) clinical and (b) non-clinical staff work for each regional centre for the National Institute for Mental Health.

Jacqui Smith: The table shows the numbers of clinical and non-clinical staff currently working in each development centre of the National Institute for Mental Health (NIMHE). Further staff may be employed in the future for short-term specific projects. These will in most cases be clinically trained. Development centres will also be engaged in supporting and facilitating networks of clinical staff to undertake region wide developing activity. The majority of people involved in the work of NIMHE's Development Centres will therefore be clinically trained and engaged in clinical activity.
	
		
			 Regional Development Centres Clinical staff(23) Non-clinical staff(23) 
		
		
			 Eastern 2.8 3.6 
			 West Midlands 3.8 5 
			 East Midlands — 1.5 
			 London 1.1 5.8 
			 South West 2.5 5.5 
			 North West 2 3 
			 North East/Yorkshire and Humberside 7.8 11 
			 South East — 7.2 
		
	
	(23) Whole time equivalent

NHS Dentistry

Desmond Swayne: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many NHS dentists (a) are practising in south-west Hampshire and (b) have left the NHS in south-west Hampshire in the last 12 months; and if he will make a statement.

Hazel Blears: The latest information available is for the general dental service (GDS) for Southampton and South West Hampshire Health Authority (HA) area at 30 September 2002. 206 dentists were working in the GDS in Southampton and South West Hampshire HA area at 30 September 2002, six more than in September 2001. Eleven dentists previously practising in the HA area left the GDS in the 12 months to 30 September 2002.
	Information is not collected centrally on dentists leaving and joining other dental services, including the personal dental service, community and hospital dental services.

NHS Direct

Simon Burns: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many calls were made to NHS Direct between (a) 15 October 2000 and 10 February 2001, (b) 15 October 2001 and 10 February 2002 and (c) 15 October 2002 and 10 February 2003.

David Lammy: 1,279,200 calls were made to NHS Direct between 15 October 2000 and 10 February 2001. 1,862,500 calls were made between 15 October 2001 and 10 February 2002 and 2,000,500 calls made between 15 October 2002 and 10 February 2003.

Nurse Recruitment (Portsmouth)

Mike Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will make a statement on nurse recruitment in the Portsmouth area in the last three months.

Hazel Blears: In addition to undertaking a tender procurement exercise to set up a national health service e-recruitment project, the Department of Health is launching the 2003 national recruitment campaign for the NHS in February. The purpose of the national campaign is to provide a national brand for the NHS that is flexible and can be adapted at a local level to increase the impact of local recruitment activities.
	I am advised that at local level within Hampshire & Isle of Wight, recruitment initiatives are also on going. These include; restructuring recruitment functions to form specialist teams working on long term and short term needs, implementation of a recruitment and retention strategy group, local and national advertisements, targeted advertisements in RGN student handbook, RCN Bulletin, and Nursing Times, roadshows, events in the hospitals, and other promotional events.
	The Portsmouth City Primary Care Trust has recently launched its own website, which includes a job shop page advertising all vacancies including qualified nurses and there are a limited number of secondment opportunities to Southampton University to undertake qualified nurse training in adult mental health.

Nurse Recruitment (Portsmouth)

Ian Gibson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the cost to the NHS was from April to December 2002 of prescribing (a) Yasmin and (b) Marvelon.

Hazel Blears: During the six months April to September 2002, the net ingredient cost of the hormonal contraceptive pills Yasmin and Marvelon prescribed and dispensed in the community in England was £786,400 and £1.71 million respectively. The number of prescription items of Yasmin and Marvelon that were dispensed in the community over this time was 44,800 and 162,300 respectively.
	Net ingredient cost refers to the cost, which the dispenser is reimbursed, of the drug before discounts and does not include any dispensing costs or fees. Data have been provided from the prescription cost analysis (PCA) system and data to September 2002 are the latest available. PCA does not cover items dispensed in hospitals or private prescriptions. PCA only covers drugs that are on a prescription. Therefore contraceptive pills dispensed in family planning clinics are not included in these data.

Parkinson's Disease

Bob Spink: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will ban the use of tissue from aborted foetuses in research for Parkinson's disease; and what assessment he has made of the side-effects caused to patients by its use in research.

Hazel Blears: There are no plans to ban the use of foetal tissue in therapeutic research programmes. In accordance with the Polkinghorne guidelines research ethics committees need to examine all such proposals. Research or innovative therapy involving foetal tissue must be assessed on the merit of the individual proposal and the ethical issues involved. Any adverse effects observed would need to be reported through the appropriate systems in accordance with the Research Governance Framework for Health and Social Care (2001).

Pompe's Disease

Jenny Tonge: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what trials are taking place on methods of treatment for Pompe's disease; and if he will make a statement.

Jacqui Smith: We recognise and are sympathetic to the problems experienced by people who have Pompe's disease, and understand the difficulties and distress caused for them and their families. Current treatment consists of symptomatic management of cardiac and respiratory failure, provided through mainstream health services. We are aware that some trials are taking place overseas of the effectiveness of enzyme replacement therapy with a view to producing specialist effective therapy over the next few years.
	The main Government agency for research into the causes of and treatments for disease is the Medical Research Council (MRC), which receives its funding via the Department of Trade and Industry. The MRC is not currently funding any treatment trials into Pompe's Disease. However, the MRC always welcomes high quality applications for research into any aspect of human health and these are judged in open competition with other demands in funding. Awards are made according to their scientific quality and importance to human health. As a rule, the MRC does not earmark funds for particular topics.

Rohypnol

Martin Smyth: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what plans there are to reclassify Rohypnol; and how many doses of Rohypnol have been prescribed in each country of the United Kingdom in each year since 2000.

Hazel Blears: Rohypnol, the proprietary name for the substance flunitrazepam, is one of the benzodiazepine family of drugs, and is controlled as a Class 'C' drug. There are no plans to reclassify it. Rohypnol has not been dispensed in the community in England since 1985.
	Information relating to Wales and Scotland are for the devolved administrations to respond to. Whilst institutions in Northern Ireland are dissolved, responsibility rests with Ministers in the Northern Ireland Office.

Stroke Units

Patsy Calton: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what proportion of stroke patients were treated in a stroke unit for the minimum effective time in the last three months.

Jacqui Smith: We do not routinely collect the information requested. The most comprehensive source of information on stroke services is the National Sentinel Stroke Audit, carried out by the Royal College of Physicians. The results can be found at http://www.rcplondon.ac.uk/pubs/strokeaudit01–02.pdf.

Sustainable Communities

Damian Green: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what provisions he has made in his departmental budget for the spending entailed in the Sustainable Communities plan on healthcare in Ashford; and if he will make a statement.

Hazel Blears: Sustainable Communities Plan is an initiative of the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister and has indicated a sum of £164 million available over the next three years for Milton Keynes/South Midlands, Ashford, London-Stanstead and Cambridge.
	Ashford Borough Council and strategic partners have been working for some time on an "Ashford's Future" study, and I am advised that in December 2001, key capacity issues were examined including a health profile of Ashford together with a health and modernisation plan produced by Ashford Primary Care Group. The study addressed current deficits and the vision for primary and community care looked at how many general practitioner surgeries would be needed over the growth period. "Ashford's Future The Overarching Report", published December 2002, included an indication of the number of primary care centres that would be required, phased over time.
	Ashford Primary Care Trust and the Kent & Medway Strategic Health Authority will be key partners in the planning process as action planning becomes more detailed. The PCT will use the local delivery plan process and the StHAs capital funding process to progress development in Ashford.

Vaccinations

Simon Burns: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many children under the age of five years received immunisation against (a) polio, (b) pertussis, (c) tetanus, (d) diphtheria and (e) MMR in (i) the last year for which figures are available, (ii) the previous 12 months and (iii) 1996.

Hazel Blears: Information about coverage rates for children who have completed primary immunisation courses against polio, pertussis, tetanus and diphtheria by their first and second birthday and MMR by their second birthday for the years 1996–97, 2000–01 and 2001–02 are shown in table 1.
	Information about booster and second MMR immunisations by age five is shown in table 2.
	
		Table 1: Completed primary courses: percentage of children immunised by their first birthday and second birthday
		
			  Number of children 
			 Year Thousands Diphtheria Tetanus Polio Pertussis MMR(24) 
		
		
			 Year of first birthday  
			 1996–97 609 93 93 93 92 — 
			 2000–01 578 91 91 91 90 — 
			 2001–02 556 91 91 91 90 — 
			 Year of second birthday  
			 1996–97 620 96 96 96 94 92 
			 2000–01 592 94 95 94 94 87 
			 2001–02 573 94 94 94 93 84 
		
	
	(24) Immunisation is recommended between 12 and 15 months of age
	Source:
	Department of Health, Statistics Division SD3G, Cover data
	
		Table 2: Percentage of children immunised by their 5th birthday
		
			   Diphtheria, Tetanus and Polio Pertussis MMR 
			 Year Number of children age five(25) Primary Primary and booster Primary First dose First andsecond dose 
		
		
			 1996–97(26) — — — — — — 
			 2000–01 616 94 80 92 92 75 
			 2001–02 608 94 81 93 91 74 
		
	
	(25) Thousands
	(26) Information about uptake age five was collected for the first time in 1999–2000
	Source:
	Department of Health, Statistics Division SD3G Cover data

HOME DEPARTMENT

Children's Rights Commissioner

John Barrett: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department when he will reply to the letter sent to him by the hon. Member for Edinburgh, West on 27 September 2002 regarding a Children's Rights Commissioner; and for what reasons he has not yet replied.

John Denham: I replied to the hon Member's letter on 12 February. The reply was delayed due to the original response being lost in transit between Departments.

Departmental File Stores

Gordon Prentice: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many people were employed in the departmental filestores in each year since 1997; how many have been transferred to the private sector; and if he will make a statement.

Hilary Benn: The details of the departmental and agency staff numbers, over the years in question, across the Home Office Group are set put in the following table:
	
		
			  Department Agencies  
			  Other directorates Immigration and nationality directorate Prison service Passport service Forensic science service Criminal record bureau Total 
			  Staff posts Staff posts Staff posts Staff posts Staff posts Staff posts Staff posts 
		
		
			 1997–98 10 11 14 12 10 N/a 57 
			 1998–99 11 11 14 9 10 N/a 55 
			 1999–2000 9 11 14 10.5 9 N/a 53.5 
			 2000–01 9 11 13 17.5 8 N/a 58.5 
			 2001–02 10 11 15 15.5 8 N/a 59.5 
			 2002–03 10 11 19 15.5 8 0 63.5 
		
	
	No posts have been transferred out to the private sector during the period in question.

Drug Rehabilitation Funding (Derbyshire)

Patrick McLoughlin: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how much funding was made available for the rehabilitation of drug offenders in Derbyshire in each year from 1997 to 2002.

Bob Ainsworth: Information is not available in the form requested.
	The pooled treatment budget, introduced in 2001–02 provides funding for the treatment and rehabilitation of people with drug problems, including offenders. Drug Action Teams use their pooled treatment budget allocations, together with additional resources from health and local authorities and other sources to fund treatment provision in their areas.
	The level of pooled treatment budget funding allocated to Derbyshire in 2001–02 was £1.376 million. This was increased to £1.8496 million in 2002–03. In 2003–04, Derbyshire's pooled treatment budget allocation will increase by 29 per cent to £2.395 million.

Drugscope

Nick Hawkins: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department 
	(1)  what funding from (a) his Department and (b) any other government department has been provided to Drugscope in (i) 1997–98, (ii) 1998–99, (iii) 1999–2000, (iv) 2000–01, (v) 2001–02 and (vi) 2002–03; and what funding is planned for future years.
	(2)  what discussions he has had about future funding for Drugscope.

Bob Ainsworth: Drugscope and its predecessor organisations the Standing Conference on Drug Abuse and the Institute for the Study of Drug Dependency received the following funds from the Home Office and other Government Departments (Department of Health, Department for Education and Skills and the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister):
	
		£
		
			  1997–98 1998–99 1999–2000 2000–01 2001–02 2002–03 
		
		
			 Home Office 0 0 104,209 371,708 440,490 106,000 
			 Other Departments 590,000 774,000 1,091,753 843,480 739,500 600,511 
			 Total 590,000 774,000 1,195,962 1,215,188 1,179,990 706,511 
		
	
	These figures are based upon information available from Departmental accounting systems and include Government payments for services/consultancy that contribute to Drugscope's costs. There may be small in-year payments for one-off projects that do not appear in these figures. Funding for future years is currently under consideration.

Probation Service

Annette Brooke: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what is the average number of offenders on supervision per probation officers caseload.

Hilary Benn: The average number of offenders on supervision per probation officer as at 31 December 2001 was 40.7. However, staff other than probation officers are involved with the supervision of offenders, chiefly probation service officers. The average number of offenders on supervision per probation officer and probation service officer grades combined was 27.0 as at 31 December 2001.

WORK AND PENSIONS

Bereavement Payments

Joan Walley: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what plans he has to change the bereavement payments system for those leaving no dependants; and if he will make a statement.

Malcolm Wicks: We have no plans to change Bereavement Benefits. The current scheme was introduced on 9 April 2001 in order to focus help where it is most needed; on immediate needs and on families with children and to provide equal access to men and women for the first time.
	The Bereavement Payment is a lump sum payment of £2,000 payable immediately to help with costs arising on bereavement. Widowed Parent's Allowance is a weekly benefit payable to widowed parents who satisfy the qualifying conditions. In addition Bereavement Allowance is a weekly benefit payable, for 52 weeks following widowhood, to widows and widowers aged 45 and over without dependant children.

Corporate/Shared Services

David Laws: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions for what reasons spending by his Department on corporate and shared services has increased between 1998–99 and 2003–04; and if he will make a statement.

Ian McCartney: The Department for Work and Pensions came into being on 1April 2001. Consequently there are no comparable figures prior to this date. The final actual expenditure for 2002–03 has yet to be confirmed and therefore a comparison with actual expenditure for 2001–02 or planned expenditure for 2003–04 cannot be made. The current expenditure plans of the Department for Work and Pensions are contained in Tables 1–11 of the Departmental Report: The Government expenditure plans 2002–03 to 2003–04, Command 5424.

Correspondence

Paul Burstow: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions when he will reply to the letter of the hon. Member for Sutton and Cheam, reference Smith/PostOfficeCard/140203/MP.

Malcolm Wicks: I have replied to the hon. Member today.

Crisis Loans

Oliver Heald: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many and what value of crisis loans were paid to benefit recipients experiencing delays in the administration of their benefits in each year since 1997.

Malcolm Wicks: We recognise that many people making a claim to benefit will be in need of immediate financial support. To avoid unnecessary hardship, discretionary payments on account of benefit (interim payments) can be made where a claim has not been determined but the decision maker is satisfied that the basic conditions of entitlement for the benefit are likely to be met. The amount of any interim payment is automatically recoverable from the main benefit when it is awarded.
	Crisis Loan alignment payments can be made to people awaiting their first payment of benefit which is paid in arrears, or their first payment of wages. Crisis Loans made to people awaiting benefit payments will cover their needs until their first benefit pay-day, following which full or interim payments of benefit can be made. In the main, these payments are made to people of working age (as pensioners are generally paid in advance). Information is not collected separately on the number or value of alignment payments made to people awaiting a first payment of benefit.
	The available information is in the table. The figures show the total number and value of Crisis Loan alignment payments made, including those made to people awaiting payment of their first wage.
	
		Social Fund Crisis Loan Alignment Payments
		
			  Number of payments Expenditure (£million) 
		
		
			 1997–98 398,731 17 
			 1998–99 433,851 20 
			 1999–2000 474,076 23 
			 2000–01 476,936 24 
			 2001–02 486,031 27 
		
	
	Notes:
	1. Expenditure figures are rounded to the nearest £million.
	2. Awards including alignment payments may include other items.
	3. Technical problems with the Social Fund Policy, Budget and Management Information System mean that figures for 1997–98 and 1998–99 may be subject to a margin of error of 5 per cent. to 10 per cent. and should therefore be treated as a guide only.
	Sources
	Annual Reports by the Secretary of State on the Social Fund 1997–98 to 2001–02; and the Social Fund Policy, Budget and Management Information System

Industrial Action/Sickness Absence

Roger Williams: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many working days have been lost in his Department and its predecessors due to (a) industrial action and (b) illness in (i) 1997–98, (ii) 1998–99, (iii) 1999–2000, (iv) 2000–01, (v) 2001–02 and (vi) 2002–03.

Ian McCartney: holding answer 12 February 2003
	I refer the hon. Member to the written answer I gave the hon. Member for Yeovil, Mr. David Laws, on 12 February 2003, Official Report, column 803–04W.

Widowers' Benefits

Ben Chapman: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions if he will make a statement on widowers' benefits.

Malcolm Wicks: Bereavement Benefits were introduced on 9 April 2001, and for the first time extended support to both widows and widowers following the death of a spouse. These new benefits concentrate the help available where it is most needed; on immediate needs and on families with children.
	The Bereavement Payment is a lump sum payment of £2,000 payable immediately to help with costs arising on bereavement. Widowed Parent's Allowance is a weekly benefit payable to widowed parents who satisfy the qualifying conditions. In addition Bereavement Allowance is a weekly benefit payable, for 52 weeks following widowhood, to widows and widowers aged 45 and over without dependant children.

DEPUTY PRIME MINISTER

Civil Servants

David Laws: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister how many civil servants have been employed by (a) his Department and (b) each of its agencies and non-departmental bodies in each year from 1994–95 to 2002–03; and if he will make a statement.

Christopher Leslie: I refer the hon. Member to the answer given by my hon. Friend the Member for Paisley South on 22 January 2003, Official Report, column 333–4W).

Computer Crime

Paul Burstow: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister how many cases of computer (a) hacking, (b) fraud and (c) theft his Department recorded in 2001–02; and on how many occasions computer systems have been illegally accessed by computer hackers (i) within and (ii) outside his Department.

Christopher Leslie: The Office of the Deputy Prime Minister was established on 29 May 2002. During the period 29 May 2002 to 31 December 2002 there were: (a) no recorded cases of computer hacking, (b) no recorded cases of computer fraud, and (c) one reported case of computer theft.

Computer Misuse

Steve Webb: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister how many cases of computer misuse there were in his Department in each of the last five years, broken down by each category of misuse; and how many of those cases resulted in disciplinary action.

Christopher Leslie: Coinciding with the creation of the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister on 29 May 2002, a new policy was introduced dealing with the use/misuse of the Office's ICT resources. This policy was brought to the attention of staff in an Office Bulletin and is contained within the staff handbook.
	No cases of misuse have been raised since the introduction of the new policy.

Council Housing

Jimmy Wray: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what proposals he has to increase the standard of living conditions in areas of council housing.

Tony McNulty: As set out in "Sustainable communities: building for the future" launched by my right hon. Friend the Deputy Prime Minister on 5 February (copies of which are available in the Library) the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister is investing £2.8 billion over the next three years to improve council housing and reforming the way targets are delivered to make all social housing decent by 2010.
	Alongside this, funds have been provided for 'liveability' (£201 million), neighbourhood wardens (£50 million), groundwork (£40 million) and 'Community Enablers' (£27 million), all of which will contribute to improving living conditions in areas of council housing. Proposals for tackling anti-social behaviour will be set out in a White Paper and Bill planned for this year.

Council Housing

Jimmy Wray: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what improvements have been made to council houses since 1997; and how much has been invested in council housing in each year since 1997.

Tony McNulty: The resources provided by central government to support housing investment by local authorities in England since 1997–98 are tabled below. The table also gives figures for the amount of capital expenditure by authorities on the council housing stock. The number of council houses which failed to meet the decent standard fell from 1.9 million in 1996 to 1.2 million in 2001. Around half of this reduction resulted from transfers to housing associations, where extensive improvement programmes will have been agreed as part of the transfer, Right to Buy sales and demolitions.
	
		£ million
		
			  Central Government support for housing capital(27) Capital spend by authorities on council housing 
		
		
			 1997–98 926 1,563 
			 1998–99 1,211 1,660 
			 1999–2000 1,252 1,569 
			 2000–01 1,891 1,816 
			 2001–02 2,377 2,120 
			 2002–03 2,474 (28)2,505 
			 2003–04 2,686 Not yet available 
		
	
	(27) Includes housing credit approvals, the Major Repairs Allowance, Arms Length Management Organisation resources and support for Disabled Facilities Grants and Cash Incentive Schemes.
	(28) Planned expenditure

Council Housing

Jimmy Wray: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister how many council houses have been sold since 1997; and how many council houses there are in the UK.

Tony McNulty: Information on the total number of council house sales in the United Kingdom up to March 2002 is currently incomplete. However, between April 1997 and March 2002 it is estimated that there were approximately 706,000 council house sales in Great Britain, about 380,000 of which were transfers to registered social landlords. Latest available estimates of dwelling stock in the United Kingdom are as at 31 March 2001, when some 3,684,000 dwellings were rented from local authorities; the corresponding estimate for Great Britain was 3,558,000.

Council Housing

Austin Mitchell: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what proportion of and how many council stock properties are classified as non decent in (a) Hull, (b) the East Riding and (c) North East Lincolnshire.

Tony McNulty: Local authorities provide estimates of the number and proportions of homes they own that are non decent in their Business plans. The figures provided in the plans submitted in July 2002 are as follows.
	
		
			  Non-decent dwellings* % of stocknon-decent 
		
		
			 Kingston upon Hull 27,640 80 
			 East Riding of Yorkshire 5,260 43 
			 North East Lincolnshire 3,000 33 
		
	
	* Estimates rounded to the nearest 10

Council Housing

Austin Mitchell: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what steps he is taking to (a) provide funding and (b) allow councils to tackle repair and improvement backlogs, if tenants vote to stay with the council.

Tony McNulty: There are two routes—Arms Length Management Organisation and the Private Finance Initiative—through which local authorities can access additional resources to bring their council housing up to a decent standard by 2010. Substantial increases in the resources available for both these programmes were announced earlier this month in our action programme "Sustainable communities: building for the future". The Office of the Deputy Prime Minister has just completed a Review which identified ways of making these programmes more effective. The main findings were set out in the publication Sustainable Communities: Building for the Future.

External Consultants

David Laws: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister how much (a) his Department and (b) each agency and non-departmental public body spent on external consultancy in each year from 1995–96 to 2002–03 (planned); and if he will make a statement.

Christopher Leslie: I refer the hon. Member to the answer given to the Hon. Member for Buckingham, for information on external consultancy spend by the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister since it came into being on 29 May 2002.
	
		The Executive Agencies:
		
			  £ 
		
		
			  The Rent Service (since it started in October 1999) 
			 1999–00 1,001,920 
			  
			 2000–01 2,068,656 
			 2001–02 1,787,271 
			 2002–03 2,038,000 (estimated) 
			  
			 The Planning Inspectorate 
			 1995–96 721,000 
			 1996–97 698,000 
			 1997–98 197,000 
			 1998–99 292,000 
			 1999–00 1,945,000 
			 2000–01 1,750,000 
			 2001–02 3,454,000 
			 2002–03 3,884,000 (estimated) 
			  
			 The Fire Service College 
			 1995–96 35,917 
			 1996–97 215,190 
			 1997–98 151,687 
			 1998–99 100,246 
			 1999–00 99,900 
			 2000–01 77,696 
			 2001–02 121,786 
			 2002–03 135,000 (estimated) 
			   
			 The QE II Conference Centre 
			 1995–96 33,848 
			 1996–97 8,737 
			 1997–98 Nil 
			 1998–99 Nil 
			 1999–00 Nil 
			 2000–01 2,250 
			 2001–02 Nil 
			 2002–03 2000 (estimated) 
			   
			 The Non Departmental Public Bodies 
			 The Housing Action Trusts 
			 1995–96 3,406,000 
			 1996–97 2,242,000 
			 1997–98 3,736,000 
			 1998–99 2,490,000 
			 1999–00 2,020,000 
			 2000–01 2,550,000 
			 2001–02 2,400,000 
			 2002–03 3,300,000 (estimated) 
			   
			 The Audit Commission 
			 1995–96 150,000 
			 1996–97 240,000 
			 1997–98 280,000 
			 1998–99 630,000 
			 1999–00 1,300,000 
			 2000–01 1,120,000 
			 2001–02 640,000 
			 2002–03 700,000 (estimated) 
			   
			 The Standards Board for England is only able to provide information for the last two years  
			 2001–02 151,000 
			 2002–03 70,000 (estimated) 
			   
			 English Partnerships since it started in 1999 the figures are as follows  
			 1999–00 3,000,000 
			 2000–01 1,870,000 
			 2001–02 950,000 
			 2002–03 1,130,000 (estimated)

Fraud and Theft

David Laws: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister how much money has been lost by his Department and its agencies and non-departmental public bodies through (a) fraud and (b) theft in each year since 1996–97.

Christopher Leslie: The Office of the Deputy Prime Minister was created in May 2002.
	I refer the hon. Member to the answer given to the hon. Member for Buckingham on 27 February 2003, Official Report, Hansard.

Heritage Assets

David Laws: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what sales of heritage assets and antique assets have been made by his Department since May 1997; if he will list other assets; and if he will estimate the total sales proceeds.

Christopher Leslie: No heritage or antique assets have been sold by the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister since it was created on 29 May 2002. There have been, consequently, no sale proceeds.
	There are no heritage or antique assets held on the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister's asset register.

Housing

Jimmy Wray: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister how many new homes have been built since 1997; where they are located; and what proportion (a) are council houses and (b) have been transferred to housing associations.

Tony McNulty: Table 1 shows how many new homes have been built in each region since 1997–98 and what proportion were council houses. Table 2 shows the number of Large Scale Voluntary Transfers of local authority stock and an estimate of the total number of dwellings transferred. It is not possible to provide data on what proportion of new homes have been transferred.
	
		Table 1
		
			  Financial year 
			  1997–98 1998–99 1999–2000 2000–01 2001–02 
		
		
			  
			  
			 All dwellings built 
			 North East 7,581 6,665 7,428 6,764 6,390 
			 North West 19,201 18,969 18,922 18,317 15,892 
			 Yorkshire and the Humber 15,464 13,085 13,418 13,446 13,239 
			 East Midlands 14,549 14,755 16,378 13,602 14,062 
			 West Midlands 13,392 14,031 15,297 14,213 13,459 
			 East 21,301 18,986 18,745 16,002 15,617 
			 London 13,623 12,864 12,480 14,280 14,170 
			 South East 25,441 23,346 23,175 22,086 21,895 
			 South West 19,003 15,929 15,912 14,979 15,575 
			 England 149,555 138,630 141,755 133,689 130,299 
			   
			 Local authorities (percentage)
			 North East 0.12 0.11 0.05 — — 
			 North West — — — — 0.01 
			 Yorkshire and the Humber 0.10 0.01 0.02 — 0.03 
			 East Midlands 0.71 0.54 0.04 0.06 — 
			 West Midlands 0.13 — 0.21 0.55 — 
			 East 0.17 0.03 — — 0.23 
			 London 0.38 0.27 — 1.11 0.37 
			 South East 0.12 0.12 0.13 0.55 — 
			 South West 0.31 0.23 0.16 0.15 0.08 
			 England 0.22 0.14 0.07 0.29 0.08 
		
	
	
		Table 2
		
			  Financial year 
			  1997–98 1998–99 1999–2000 2000–01 2001–02 
		
		
			  
			  
			 Number of large scale voluntary transfers   
			 North East — — 1 1 — 
			 North West 2 2 5 4 — 
			 Yorkshire and the Humber — — — 1 — 
			 East Midlands — 1 2 1 2 
			 West Midlands — 1 2 3 1 
			 East — — 1 — 3 
			 London 1 1 — 2 — 
			 South East 2 2 2 3 1 
			 South West 1 5 3 3 — 
			 England 6 12 16 18 7 
			   
			 Estimated total dwellings transferred
			 North East — — 3,500 36,400 — 
			 North West 5,600 4,700 25,000 19,100 — 
			 Yorkshire and the Humber — — — 12,800 — 
			 East Midlands — 5,000 8,800 3,400 9,100 
			 West Midlands — 13,000 15,700 28,900 5,500 
			 East — — 6,700 — 15,400 
			 London 8,200 1,200 — 7,100 — 
			 South East 5,000 5,600 9,700 13,500 4,800 
			 South West 5,500 26,200 9,900 10,500 — 
			 England 24,300 55,800 79,300 131,700 34,800

Housing

Eric Pickles: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what research he has (a) commissioned and (b) evaluated on the link between housing land shortages and the house price increase of the late 1990s; and if he will make a statement.

Tony McNulty: In developing Sustainable Communities: building for the future, the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister officials have taken note of a range of evidence concerning potential imbalances between housing supply and demand.

Housing (Kirklees)

Ann Taylor: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what capital resources for housing investment have been allocated at 2002–03 prices to Kirklees Council in each year since 1990–91.

Tony McNulty: The information requested is the following table:
	
		£ million
		
			 Year Actual allocations(29) In 2002–03 prices(30) 
		
		
			 1990–91 10.4 14.3 
			 1991–92 10.6 13.6 
			 1992–93 11.7 14.6 
			 1993–94 11.8 14.3 
			 1994–95 9.0 10.8 
			 1995–96 9.4 11.0 
			 1996–97 9.6 10.9 
			 1997–98 8.3 9.1 
			 1998–99 9.6 10.3 
			 1999–00 10.7 11.1 
			 2000–01 16.1 16.5 
			 2001–02 21.3 21.3 
			 2002–03 20.7 20.2 
			 2003–04(31) 19.7 18.8 
		
	
	(29) Covers housing annual capital guidelines (which include an element to be financed from authorities' capital receipts); the major repairs allowance; support for disabled facilities grants; the Capital Receipts Initiative; and ring-fenced support for a number of housing schemes, e.g. Cash Incentive Schemes. Estate Action scheme funding is excluded.
	(30) Allocations have been converted to 2002–03 prices using the GDP Deflator.
	(31) The reduction in 2003–04 mainly reflects a change in the local government capital finance system, which means the allocations no longer include an element assumed to be financed from authorities capital receipts.

Housing Provision

Lynne Jones: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what account he took of the High Court decisions in the cases of R v Islington LBC ex parte Reilly and Maunix (1998) and R v Westminster CC ex parte Al-Khorshan (1999) in drawing up his code of guidance on allocation of accommodation; and if he will make a statement on the balance between his encouragement of choice-based lettings and the legal requirement to give preference to those identified as having urgent housing needs.

Tony McNulty: A new Code of Guidance on the Allocation of Accommodation, revised to take account of the changes to Part 6 of the Housing Act 1996 contained in the Homelessness Act 2002, was issued in November 2002.
	The new Code takes account of the Court of Appeal judgment in the conjoined cases of R (on the application of A) v Lambeth London Borough Council and R (on the application of Lindsay) v Lambeth London Borough Council on 23 July 2002 which upheld the High Court decisions in R v Islington LBC, ex parte Reilly and Mannix (1998) and R v Westminster, ex parte Al-Khorsan (1999). The covering letter which was sent with the Code to all housing authorities and other interested parties specifically mentioned the Court of Appeal judgment. It is for housing authorities to take account of the implications of the judgment for their allocation schemes, and to take account of the Secretary of State's guidance in the Code.
	The revised Code provides (at paragraph 5.9) that, in framing their allocation scheme so as to secure that reasonable preference is given to certain categories of persons, housing authorities must have regard to the fact that the reasonable preference categories should not be treated in isolation from one another; and must provide a mechanism for identifying applicants who qualify under more than one category and for taking this into account in assessing their housing need.
	The Government believe that all housing authorities should adopt more choice-based, customer-focussed, lettings policies, while continuing to meet housing need. This is the best way to ensure sustainable tenancies and to build settled and stable communities. We believe that there is sufficient flexibility within the existing statutory framework to enable housing authorities to offer applicants a choice of accommodation and to ensure that reasonable preference is given to those with the most urgent housing need.
	The Code advises (at paragraph 5.11) that, when considering how to reconcile choice and housing need, housing authorities should consider adopting a simplified system of applicant prioritisation in place of a complex points-based approach. An appropriate approach might include systems that:
	(a) "band" applicants into a number of groups reflecting different levels of housing need, with prioritisation of applicants within these groups being determined by waiting time, and/or
	(b) give people in the most urgent housing need priority over other applicants (often by using a time-limited "priority card").
	The Office of the Deputy Prime Minister will be providing more detailed good practice guidance on this issue towards the end of this year, once the funded choice based lettings pilot scheme has been properly evaluated.

Industrial Action/Illness

Andrew George: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister how many working days have been lost in his Department and its predecessors owing to (a) industrial action and (b) illness in (i) 1997–98, (ii) 1998–99, (iii) 1999–2000, (iv) 2000–01, (v) 2001–02 and (vi) 2002–03 to date.

Christopher Leslie: The Office of the Deputy Prime Minister was established following machinery of Government changes in May 2002.
	In the case of working days lost due to industrial action no days have been lost during the requested periods.
	In respect of sickness absence, the most recent "Analysis of Sickness Absence in the Civil Service" was published by the Cabinet Office and announced by Ministerial Statement on 19 December 2002. This covered the calendar year 2001 for the predecessor Department of Transport, Local Government and the Regions and its executive agencies. Previous reports go back to 1996. Figures for 2002 will be announced in due course.
	The Office is committed to managing sickness absence effectively and to meeting its Service Delivery Agreement (SDA) target reductions in sick absence by the end of 2003.

Land Reform

David Drew: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what plans he has for land ownership reform in England and Wales; and what discussions he has had with local government and its representative organisations on the subject of land reform.

Tony McNulty: The Office of the Deputy Prime Minister has no general plans for land ownership reform and have held no such discussions, although the Lord Chancellor's Department is currently considering recommendations by the Law Commission for the abolition of remnants of the feudal system in land law.
	Government policy is mainly directed towards making the property markets work better through our proposals for a seller's pack for residential transactions; residential leasehold reform; the introduction of commonhold; the promotion of greater choice and flexibility in commercial leasing as well as reform of the law on renewal of business tenancies; and work HM Land Registry is undertaking to improve market information available to buyers and sellers of land and to develop electronic conveyancing. Major reforms to the law of land registration and the law of adverse possession will come into force on 13 October 2003 at the commencement of the Land Registration Act 2002. The Office of the Deputy Prime Minister has also provided greater rights of public access to rural areas.
	The Law Commission is working in accordance with its published programme to make land law fairer and more modern. Current projects include major reviews of housing law and compulsory purchase law as well as work on forfeiture of leases. A project on the law of easements and analogous rights such as restrictive covenants is planned in the near future.

Land Reform

David Drew: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what calculation he has made of the likely impact on land prices in England and Wales of land ownership reform in Scotland.

Tony McNulty: The Office of the Deputy Prime Minister has not undertaken a detailed analysis, but given the changes in Scotland there is unlikely to be any impact in England and Wales.

Land Reform

David Drew: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what discussions he has had with the Scottish Executive on the subject of land ownership reform.

Tony McNulty: None, but officials of the Scottish Executive have provided my officials with briefings on the Scottish land ownership reform programme at their regular contact meetings.

Legislation

Eric Pickles: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister how many bills his Department and its predecessors have sponsored in each of the past five years; and how many have received Royal Assent.

Christopher Leslie: Bills sponsored in the last five years by the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister (ODPM) and previously by both the Department for Transport, Local Government and the Regions (DTLR) and the Department for the Environment, Transport and the Regions (DETR) are listed in the following table.
	
		
			 Session Bill/Act  
		
		
			 DETR Acts/Bills 1997–2001 
			 1997–98 Local Government Finance (Supplementary Credit Approvals) Act 1997Local Government Contracts Act 1997Regional Development Agencies Act 1998Greater London Authority (Referendum) Act 1998Private Hire Vehicles (London) Act 1998 (P)Road Traffic Reduction (National Targets) Act 1998 (P)Waste Minimisation Act 1998 (P) 
			 1998–99 Water Industry Act 1999Rating (Valuation) Act 1999Local Government Act 1999Greater London Authority Act 1999Pollution Prevention and Control Act 1999Road Traffic (Vehicle Testing) Act 1999 (P)Bills dropped:Railways Bill (scrutinised by Select Committee, Bill dropped and proposals pulled into next sessions Transport Bill) 
			 1999–2000 Countryside and Rights of Way Act 2000Local Government Act 2000Transport Act 2000Warm Homes and Energy Conservation Act 2000 (P) 
			 2000–01 The Vehicles (Crime) Act 2001 (HO took the lead)The Rating (Former Agricultural Premises and Rural Shops) Act 2001Bills dropped:Homes Bill—Ran out of time because of general electionCommonhold and Leasehold Reform Bill (LCD took the lead)—Ran out of time because of general election 
			   
			 DTLR Acts/Bills 2001–02 session 
			 2001–02 Travel Concessions (Eligibility) Act 2002Sex Discrimination (Election Candidates) Act 2002Homelessness Act 2002Commonhold and Leasehold Reform Act 2002 (LCD took the lead) 
		
	
	ODPM Bills currently in committee stages
	Local Government Bill
	Planning and Compulsory Purchase Bill
	Regional Assemblies (Preparations) Bill

Market Renewal Pathfinders

Gordon Prentice: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what criteria will be used to allocate the £500 million earmarked for the nine housing market renewal pathfinder areas in England.

Tony McNulty: Market renewal pathfinders are developing schemes to recreate sustainable communities in their areas, requiring long-term commitment from them and Government. Recognising that the problems differ in each area and that the solutions must also, it is intended that funding for the low demand pathfinder projects will be determined by negotiation with each project. Funding will be subject to the quality of plans and to subsequent performance. Independent Scrutiny by the Audit Commission will act as a check on value for money.

New Homes (Milton Keynes)

Jonathan Sayeed: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister if he will place in the Library a map showing the area covered by the proposed building of new homes in the Milton Keynes area.

Tony McNulty: The maps in "Sustainable communities: building for the future" and "Sustainable communities in the South East" indicate the general area covered by the study into the potential growth area around Milton Keynes/South Midlands. There is, at present, no map that shows the proposed location of any new homes in the Milton Keynes area. Further studies are required before such a map can be drawn up. Following publication of the Communities Plan we are supporting local partners in carrying out more detailed studies to inform the RPG alterations later this year. These will indicate strategic areas where development is proposed.

Public Bodies

Matthew Green: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister if he will list the (a) total budget and (b) departmental funding for (i) rent assessment panels, (ii) The Ordnance Survey, (iii) The Standards Board for England, (iv) The Housing Corporation, (v) Housing Action Trust, (vi) The Boundary Commission for England, (vii) The Boundary Commission for Wales, (viii) The Property Advisory Group, (ix) The Audit Commission, (x) English Partnerships, (xi) The Rent Service, (xii) the Advisory Panel on Standards for the Planning Inspectorate, (xiii) Queen Elizabeth II Conference Centre and (xiv) The Fire Service College in (A) 2000–01, (B) 2001–02, (C) 2002–03, (D) 2004–05 and (E) 2005–06.

Christopher Leslie: The figures requested for (ii) the Ordnance Survey, (iii) the Standards Board for England (which came into existence in April 2001) (iv) The Housing Corporation, (v) Housing Action Trusts, (ix) the Audit Commission, (x) English Partnerships, (xi) the Rent Service, (xiii) Queen Elizabeth II Conference Centre and (xiv) the Fire Service College, for 2000–01 and 2001–02 are published in their annual report and accounts, copies of which are available in the Library of the House.
	For 2002–03 the figures are in the following table:
	
		£
		
			  (a) Total Budget (b) Departmental Funding 
		
		
			 (ii) the Ordnance Survey (32)112,000,000 — 
			 (iii) the Standards Board for England 7,900,000 7,900,000 
			 (iv) the Housing Corporation 1,156,887,000 (34)1,158,936,000 
			 (v) Housing Action Trusts 114,800,000 114,800,000 
			 (ix) Audit Commission (33)207,000,000 21,700,000 
			 (x) English Partnerships 145,650,000 140,000,000 
			 (xi) The Rent Service 42,500,000 42,500,000 
			 (xiii) Queen Elizabeth II Conference Centre 7,000,000 426,000 
			 (xiv) Fire Service College (32)19,000,000 550,000 
		
	
	(32) This includes amounts paid by Government for the provision of data and services.
	(33) The Audit Commission's financial year is 1 November to 31 October, this figure is forecast to end October 2003.
	(34) The excess in Departmental funding to total budget is due to an accrual difference.
	Note:
	Budgets for 2004–05 and 2005–06 are not yet available.
	The (i) rent assessment panels, (vi) the Parliamentary Boundary Commission for England, (vii) the Parliamentary Boundary Commission for Wales, (viii) the Property Advisory Group, and (xii) the Advisory Panel on Standards for the Planning Inspectorate do not receive Government funding other than costs to the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister of sponsoring these bodies.

Publicity and Advertising

David Laws: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister how much (a) his Department and (b) each agency and non-departmental public body sponsored by his Department spent on (i) publicity and (ii) advertising in each year from 1995–96 to 2000–03 (estimated); and if he will make a statement.

Christopher Leslie: The Office of the Deputy Prime Minister was created on 29 May 2002. Since then the estimated expenditure up until 31 March 2003 for publicity is £10.97 million of which £5.15 million is for advertising.
	Figures for agencies and non-departmental bodies are not held centrally and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.

Right to Buy

Geoffrey Clifton-Brown: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister whether mortgage brokers registered under the Mortgage Code Complaints Board will be permitted to give advice on the Right to Buy Scheme under the proposed changes implemented by the Deputy Prime Minister; and whether other financial institutions registered with the Financial Services Authority will be able to give similar advice.

Tony McNulty: Yes. Mortgage lenders and Mortgage Code Compliance Board (MCCB) registered mortgage brokers are permitted to give advice on the suitability of all mortgage loans, irrespective of whether they are for purchases under the Right to Buy scheme or otherwise. These arrangements are not affected by the changes proposed to the Right to Buy Scheme.

Sickness Absence

David Laws: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what the rate of staff (a) absenteeism and (b) sickness was in his Department, its predecessors and each of its agencies and non-departmental public bodies in each year from 1990–91 to 2002–03; what the target set is for his Department; and if he will make a statement.

Christopher Leslie: The Office of the Deputy Prime Minister was established following machinery of Government changes in May 2002.
	In respect of sickness absence, the most recent 'Analysis of Sickness Absence in the Civil service' was published by the Cabinet Office and announced by Ministerial Statement on 19 December 2002. This is available in House Libraries. This covered the calendar year 2001 for the Cabinet Office, the predecessor Department of Transport, Local Government and the Regions and its executive agencies. Previous reports go back to 1996. Figures for 2002 will be announced in due course.
	The executive non departmental public bodies are not staffed by civil servants, and the sickness absence rates for those are not collected centrally. All cases of absence are taken up and dealt with by line management. Separate information on absenteeism is not readily available. The Office will set a target for reducing sickness absence in the context of its current business planning round.

Social Housing

Lynne Jones: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister if he will identify those elements of the resources listed in Annex A of the paper, Sustainable Communities, that will provide funding for investment in (a) repairs and improvements to council housing, (b) repairs and improvements to housing owned by registered social landlords and (c) the provision of new homes for rent.

Tony McNulty: From 2004–05 resources that were provided to local authorities for their Housing Investment Programme, and resources provided to the Housing Corporation will be put into a single regional housing pot. Final decisions on the allocation of resources will be made based on advice from the new Regional Housing Boards (RHBs).
	The figures shown are those we used in building up the totals and may not be the final figures.
	(a) Money for improvements to Council housing includes:
	(i) The funding shown in the third line of the table for Arms Length Management Organisations (£1,994 million over the next three years);
	(ii) A share of the housing investment programme (HIP) money that forms part of the totals in the first two lines of the table. In 2003–04 HIP amounts to £842 million. Only a proportion of this will be used to support improvements to Council housing. HIP is also used to fund improvements to private housing, and provision of new affordable housing. HIP resources go into the local authority single capital pot for use at the discretion of the LA. But on past trends about one third of HIP funding will be used to support council housing improvements. From 2004–05 this funding becomes part of the single regional housing pot.
	(iii) In addition £685 million of new PFI credits were announced in Sustainable Communities: Building for the Future. These are not included in the funds shown in Annex A.
	(iv) The Major Repairs Allowance was introduced in 2001 and gives local authorities the funding required to maintain the condition of their stock. This is provided through the housing revenue account and does not appear in the figures in Annex A. It will total over £4 billion over the next three years.
	(b) Funding for improvements to RSL housing
	RSLs fund the vast majority of their repairs and improvements from rental income or by borrowing privately. But the Housing Corporation's Approved Development Programme provides for some £40 million next year to fund improvements. This funding will be included in the single regional housing pot from 2004–05.
	(c) Funding for new homes to rent
	The single regional housing pots shown in the first two lines of the table in Annex A include funding for the Housing Corporation for new affordable homes. In addition some of the HIP resources, and some of the funding in the transitional arrangements line, will be used for the provision of affordable homes by RSLs. In total we are providing some £5 billion over the next three years for affordable housing, though the precise figure allocated will depend on advice from the RHBs.
	Not all of this funding will support homes to rent—some will support low cost home ownership. Again the precise split will be subject to advice from the RHBs, but the majority will be invested in homes to rent.

Social Housing

Andrew George: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister how many days on average people were on the waiting list for social housing in (a) England and (b) each local authority defined as rural by region, who were (i) defined as in priority need and (ii) others, in each year since 1978.

Tony McNulty: Information on length of time spent on waiting list for social housing is available from the Survey of English Housing for 2000–01 and 2001–02, but not for earlier years. (Information is not collected that identifies households that were classified as in priority need). In the table data for the two survey years has been combined in order to provide a larger sample size.
	
		Average time waited to be allocated social housing accommodation: England 2001–01 and 2001–02
		
			 Type of local authority Average length of time waited—days 
		
		
			 Rural 426 
			 Urban 370 
			 All (England) 379 
		
	
	Source
	Survey of English Housing

Special Advisers/Press Officers

David Laws: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister how many (a) special advisers and (b) press officers have been employed by his Department in each year from 1994–95 to 2002–03; and if he will make a statement.

Christopher Leslie: In relation to special advisers, I refer the hon. Member to the answer given by my hon. Friend the Member for Paisley, South on 31 January 2003, Official Report, column 1056W.
	The Office of the Deputy Prime Minister was created on 29 May 2002. On 1 January 2003, the Office employed 23 full-time equivalent press officers.

Stock Transfers

Austin Mitchell: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister if he will reduce the ODPM target of achieving 200,000 council housing stock transfers a year; and what numbers have been achieved in each of the last five years.

Tony McNulty: There is no target for transferring council housing to registered social landlords. The December 2000 housing policy statement, "Quality and Choice: The way forward for housing", said that the Government was willing to support the transfer of up to 200,000 homes annually in the period 2001–02 to 2003–04, where a local authority selects the transfer option and has the support of tenants. The number of homes transferring over the last 5 financial years is set out in the table below:
	
		
			 Financial Year Number of Units Transferred 
		
		
			 1997–98 32,982 
			 1998–99 73,900 
			 1999–00 97,385 
			 2000–01 134,219 
			 2001–02 *35,390 
		
	
	* Between 1997 and 2000 the duration of each transfer programme was one year. This period was extended to 2 years from 2001. Therefore the final total for the 2001 programme is expected to be 186,777 which comprises 35,390 dwellings which transferred in 2001–02, 86,387 transferred to date in 2002–03, and a further 65,000 that are due to transfer by 31 March 2003.

Stock Transfers

Austin Mitchell: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what contribution the £800 million set aside for 2003–04 to finance stock transfer by writing of overhanging debt makes to the most deprived local authority areas.

Tony McNulty: The Government's target is to make all social housing decent by 2010, including that in the most deprived local authority areas. Housing transfer is one route by which this can be achieved. Payments to meet local authorities' overhanging debt are made where the value of the housing stock transferring is less than a local authority's associated housing debt.

Stock Transfers

Austin Mitchell: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister 
	(1)  what changes he requested to the National Audit Office report on council housing stock transfers;
	(2)  what queries he has raised with the National Audit Office about its report into council housing stock transfers; and whether those changes resulted in the delay in publication.

Tony McNulty: In line with normal practice, the National Audit Office's draft report is being discussed and the facts in it agreed with officials in the office of the Deputy Prime Minister. A publication date for the report has always been provisional subject to the work being complete.

Stock Transfers

Austin Mitchell: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what help will be given to councils whose council housing stock is in negative equity to pursue large scale voluntary transfers.

Tony McNulty: My right hon. Friend the Deputy Prime Minister's action plan "Sustainable Communities: building for the future" published on 5 February says the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister will explore options for gap funding housing transfer where the stock has a negative value.

Supporting People Housing Projects

John Mann: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister which Supporting People housing projects have included drugs treatment.

Tony McNulty: The information requested is not held centrally and could be provided only at disproportionate cost. However, the supply mapping exercise undertaken by local authorities as part of the preparations for Supporting People showed that there were a total of 3,225 household units for substance misusers with housing related support needs in 265 services, in December 2002.

Sustainable Communities

Oona King: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister how many new affordable homes for (a) key workers and (b) other groups in housing need he expects the funding announced in Sustainable Communities: Building for the Future, to deliver in each Government Office region in 2003–04.

Tony McNulty: The Office of the Deputy Prime Minister expects to deliver around 21,000 units via the Housing Corporation's Approved Development Programme in 2003/04. This includes units to be delivered under the Challenge Fund, a significant proportion of which will be allocated to key workers in London, the South East and East of England regions.

Sustainable Communities

Oona King: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister whether the other relevant organisations identified in paragraph 6.9 of Sustainable Communities: Building for the Future, that may be invited to be involved in the proposed regional housing boards, include representatives of (a) tenants and residents associations and (b) voluntary sector organisations working with those who are homeless or in housing need.

Tony McNulty: Decisions on the precise composition of the board are a matter for agreement within the region. However, the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister does not expect the membership to be much wider than the organisations listed. The board will need to work with any existing regional housing forum, tenants and residents representatives and other housing groups, which will need to be closely involved in the development of the Regional Housing Strategy. The involvement of the Regional Assembly in the board will provide a direct link to a wide range of stakeholders, including voluntary and community groups.

Sustainable Communities (North-East)

Vera Baird: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what financial assistance the Department will give to the implementation of the Tees Valley Housing Strategy.

Tony McNulty: I refer my Hon. and learned Friend to the answers given my Hon Friend the member for Redcar on 20 February 2003, Official Report.

Theft and Fraud

John Bercow: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what his estimate is of the cost of theft and fraud to (a) his Department, (b) its agencies and (c) non-departmental public bodies in 2002.

Christopher Leslie: Losses between the creation of the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister on 29 May 2002 May and 31 December 2002 due to theft and fraud are as follows:
	
		
			  
		
		
			 Office of the Deputy Prime Minister £1,601 
			 Agencies £11,627 
			 NDPBs £81,728 
		
	
	Assets have been valued at cost, net book value or replacement cost depending on the circumstances of the individual case. Recoveries from perpetrators or others, e.g. insurance claims, have been netted off. Some incidents are still under investigation and final values may change.